Sciensus’s licence partly suspended after death of cancer patient

Britain’s health regulator has partly suspended the manufacturing licence of Sciensus, a private company paid millions by the NHS to provide vital medicines, after the death of a cancer patient who was given the wrong dose of chemotherapy.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said it had taken “immediate” action under regulation 28 of the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 law “where it appears to the MHRA that in the interests of safety the licence should be suspended”.

The MHRA found “significant deficiencies” in standards at Sciensus during an investigation triggered by the death of one patient and the hospitalisation of three others. 

All four patients were administered “incorrect” doses of an unlicensed version of cabazitaxel, a licensed chemotherapy used to treat prostate cancer, according to people familiar with the matter.

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Source: The Guardian, 25 July 2023