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Alarm for cancer patients/ Lack of antitumor drugs

2026-02-04 11:13:00, Denoncim CNA

For years, patients with tumor diseases have encountered numerous problems with the treatment they receive in hospitals, as well as the medications they are offered, or the lack of the latter, putting their lives at risk every day.

The Supreme State Audit Office, in a thematic audit report on the availability of drugs for the treatment of tumor diseases, highlights numerous problems with the supply of drugs for the treatment of these diseases.

The audit included key institutions in the medicine supply chain, such as the Ministry of Health and Social Protection, the Mandatory Health Care Insurance Fund, the Agency for Medicines and Medical Devices, and the "Mother Teresa" University Hospital Center.

Among other things, the audit reveals that almost half of the antitumor drugs authorized for marketing were never imported during the period 2021–2025.

"From the data made available by the Distribution Sector on the import of medicines, it resulted that out of 253 antitumor medicines authorized for marketing in the Republic of Albania, 116 of them, or 46%, were never imported during the audit period, January 2021 - March 2025. From the audit of correspondence between the "Mother Teresa" University Hospital Center and the Ministry of Health and Social Protection, the identified deficiencies, and the explanations provided by the audited entities, it results that the Ministry has not exhaustively exhausted the monitoring mechanisms against the QSUNT within the framework of the entire process of providing medicines for the treatment of tumor diseases," the report states.

This situation has created major gaps in the supply of critical medicines, increasing the risk to patients requiring immediate treatment. Unjustified delays have also been created by pharmaceutical importers.

The SAI emphasizes that out of 49 cases of delays, the Control Directorate has taken measures in only two cases, leaving most of the entities responsible for the supply of medicines unaffected.

"From the audit on the measures taken by the responsible structures of the FSDKSH, it was found that in 49 cases of delays in the supply of antitumor drugs by pharmaceutical importers, unjustified by accompanying documentation, the Control Directorate has taken measures in only two cases. The Pharmaceutical Warehouse Control Sector has not implemented a regular and functional monitoring mechanism, acting selectively and outside an approved control plan. For the audited cases, the penalties that should have been applied are of a total value of 49,000,000 lek for 49 entities," - the SAI emphasizes in the report.

The SAI underlines that the supply process has also been affected by the lack of penalties for delays in contract implementation and by ineffective practices in supervising contract implementation, increasing the risk of interruption of vital therapies.

"The supply process is also negatively affected by the lack of penalties for delays in the implementation of contracts and by ineffective practices in supervising the implementation of contracts and supply conditions, which in certain cases have led to the unfair certification of economic operators as "problem-free", even when prolonged shortages of medicines have been identified in critical periods for the treatment of patients," the report states.

The SAI further adds in the report that the shortage of medicines is combined with irregularities in the management and documentation of medicines.

"The shortcomings in good administration consisted of duplicate prescriptions, lack of accurate records, incorrect downloads to the system, discrepancies between quantities in progress and inventory in the system, and repeated unfulfilled requests for the same patient, reflecting weaknesses in the management, documentation and traceability processes of medicines in the relevant systems," the report states.

The report emphasizes that unilateral measures taken or not by institutions, as well as shortcomings in inter-institutional cooperation, have created a critical situation for the provision of healthcare for patients with tumor diseases.

The Supreme State Audit recommends urgent action to improve the planning, monitoring and supply of critical medicines, as well as the establishment of effective mechanisms to ensure that patients do not face life-threatening drug shortages. /CNA