Counterfeits of an erectile dysfunction drug have been found in the UK supply chain, the first time illegal copies of drugs have been detected since 1994. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has issued a recall notice on two lots of Cialis, which it has identified as counterfeit. A customer in Cheshire found the tablet crumbled when he tried to split it and contacted Lilly ICOS, whose analysis discovered it was counterfeit. The company then informed the MHRA which confirmed the drug was a fake and issued the recall notice. This is the first time since counterfeit ranitidine was discovered 10 years ago that fake drugs have been found in the legitimate UK supply chain.
Lilly ICOS is warning pharmacists to check Cialis products for lot numbers A031410 and A041410, which are on the end tab of the outer box and on the blister pack and are the counterfeit products. Products bearing these lot numbers should be sent to:
Customer Services Leader
Eli Lilly and Company Ltd
Lilly House
Priestley Road
Basingstoke
Hampshire RG24 9NL.
Reimbursement should be sought from the supplier, says Lilly.
The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry said the prompt identification of the counterfeit Cialis was “reassuring”, but added the incident highlighted the need for “the greatest vigilance and security”. The MHRA has confirmed patients are not at immediate risk from these tablets, but they should return counterfeit products to the dispensing pharmacy. MHRA chief executive Kent Woods said: “If patients think that they have taken the product and are concerned about any side effects they should consult their doctor.”
However, all this could become a thing of the past as a new technique to detect counterfeit medicines is being trialled in the UK by PA Consulting. The company will begin a pilot in a group of 50 pharmacies, dispensing doctors and hospitals to assess the technology which uses radio frequency ID tags and mass serialisation technology. The company hopes the technology will detect counterfeits before they are dispensed to the consumer, as well as reducing dispensing errors, alerting for recalled products and automatically checking expiry dates.
PA Consulting is looking for more community pharmacies to join the pilot, due to start in October. Contact Alison Williams on 01763 285156. The company will provide all the necessary equipment and the pilot will be cost neutral to the pharmacy.
This article is reproduced by kind permission of 'Chemist & Druggist ' magazine
For more information:
Lilly ICOS
Tel: 0800 0853847
by Fiona Salvage
fsalvage@cmpinformation.com
