QR Codes on anti-cancer drugs to combat counterfeiting

The drug regulatory authorities have decided to issue strict instructions to drug manufacturers to implement or provide QR codes on anti-cancer drugs.

Hyderabad: To discourage criminals from producing counterfeit anti-cancer drugs, very soon drug manufactures will start implementing mandatory QR codes on the packs of all the medicines meant for cancer patients.

Based on reports and minutes of the recent meeting of Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB) of Drug Controller General of India (DCGI), the move to provide QR codes on anti-cancer drugs was taken following reports that unscrupulous individuals were colluding with hospital pharmacies and refilling empty vials of expensive anti-cancer medicines with counterfeit drugs.

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The fake anti-cancer drugs, which are refilled in the empty vials, are mixed with genuine stocks and sold to unsuspecting cancer patients, putting the lives of cancer patients at risk. The fake or counterfeit drugs are sold at the market prices to cancer patients, generating a windfall for the counterfeiters but at the cost of the patients.

The drug regulatory authorities have decided to issue strict instructions to drug manufacturers to implement or provide QR codes on anti-cancer drugs. Apart from providing genuine information related to the stock of the cancer drugs to the patients, the QR codes are also expected to enable the regulatory authorities to rigorously track and trace every vial and strip of the medication that is being marketed in India.

In addition to the QR codes for the anti-cancer drugs, the drug regulatory authorities have also made it mandatory for major pharma companies involved in producing drugs for other ailments to clearly provide bar codes.
Almost all major pain killers, antipyretics/analgesics like Dolo, medicines for diabetics and vitamin supplements will also have bar codes, allowing the regulatory authorities to tracing the drugs.

To make sure pharma companies provide QR codes, the regulatory authorities have proposed that Schedule H2 of Drugs Rules, 1945 be amended to include all anti-cancer medicines to have mandatory provision to print affix QR codes in its labels.