This archive report was first published on 7 July 2019.
Published on July 7, 2019, a spot-check by Nation revealed that liposomal amphotericin B (L-AMB), a highly effective drug used to treat cryptococcal meningitis, is missing in most high-traffic HIV clinics in Kenya.
Cryptococcal meningitis is the second biggest killer of people living with HIV after tuberculosis, and the drug is the main one used in treating the condition.
At Kisumu Sub-County referral hospital, which serves over 7,000 patients, the drug has been missing for two months. The hospital's HIV centre employee expressed concern, saying, 'There is a big problem. Since this is a fatal condition, it should not be out of stock even for a week but it is close to a month now. The patients need to be on the drug for two weeks.'
Dr. Amos Otedo, a physician at the hospital, added, 'This is a killer condition in HIV patients. We need to have the drug in stock. It kills very fast if left untreated.'
According to a 2017 study involving 141 patients with HIV and cryptococcal meningitis, amphotericin B is not regularly supplied in public hospitals, and patients have to buy it.
The study recommended that measures to provide the drug at mid-level hospitals must be enhanced.
In Homa Bay, the leading county with the highest number of adults infected with HIV in the country, the drug was also out of stock. An employee at the Homa Bay referral hospital expressed concern, saying, 'I am not sure from when the drug has been out of stock but late last month, a friend of mine was told to come back this week. I am very sure it has not yet been procured.'
Dr. Otedo explained that a dose of the drug goes for Sh500, and a patient needs a dose every day for two weeks to complete the full treatment course.
According to Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), high prices and inaccessibility are major barriers to people accessing the drug. The MSF said that the problem has been caused by a monopoly by Gilead Sciences, a pharmaceutical firm that has failed to deliver on promises to make the drug available to people suffering from HIV.
MSF Access Campaign Pharmacist, Jessica Burry, said, 'It's deplorable that they keep dragging their feet at the expense of people's lives. Gilead must urgently honour their commitment to making L-AMB available for everyone who needs it, and quickly register the drug in high HIV-burden countries.'
