"A drug shortage can be a frightening prospect for patients and President Obama made it clear that preventing these shortages from happening is a top priority of his administration," FDA Commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg, M.D., said in the statement. "Through the collaborative work of FDA, industry, and other stakeholders, patients and families waiting for these products or anxious about their availability should now be able to get the medication they need."
The FDA responded to a dire shortage of Doxil by importing of a substitute called Lipodox. This drug has not received approval from the FDA, and its importation is only temporary, according to CNN Health. This strategy of temporarily allowing importation is generally only utilized when a drug experiences a critical shortage and FDA-approved medications cannot compensate for the deficient supply.
The government agency has conducted some evaluation of the potential health problems that could be created by the drug, the media outlet reports. The government agency expressed confidence that offering the replacement drug should eliminate the shortage within a week. Patients have been unable to obtain the drug for month, The Los Angeles Times reports. It is used to treat various types of cancers including ovarian.
