Class action lawsuit planned over diluted chemotherapy drugs

TORONTO – A class action lawsuit is being launched against an Ontario drug supplier that allegedly provided diluted chemotherapy drugs to five Canadian hospitals and was then administered to nearly 1,200 cancer patients over the past year.

The law firms Sutts, Strosberg LPP and Siskinds LPP claim Mezentco Inc., a Hamilton, Ont. company that carries on business under the name Marchese Health Care, improperly mixed chemotherapy drugs cyclophosphamide and gemcitabine , supplying them to one New Brunswick and four Ontario hospitals.

“This is a shocking revelation for cancer patients affected by this error,” said lead lawyer Harvey Strosberg in a media release. “As Canadians, we count on world class health care, and we expect and deserve long-term cancer treatment to be done seamlessly and expertly. Based on our discussions, both patients and caregivers are stunned by this news.”

The drugs in question are alleged to have been watered down between three and 20 per cent and administered in diluted states for at least the past year in some hospitals.

The underdosing affected 665 patients at London Health Sciences Centre, 290 patients at Windsor Regional Hospital, 34 at Lakeridge Health, one patient at Peterborough Regional Health Centre and 186 patients at Saint John Regional Hospital in New Brunswick.

Patients who received the too-low chemo doses are being asked to call their oncologist to discuss treatment plans.

Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne said Wednesday her government will try to find out how the diluted chemotherapy drugs were handed out.

“It’s a very worrisome situation, obviously most worrisome for the patients and their families involved, and we will work to find out how this happened,” said Wynne.

“I don’t know exactly how this happened, but we obviously need to find out how it happened.”

Questions have been raised about the impact the lower than intended doses of the chemotherapy drugs might have had on the treatment for the cancer patients and whether or not they could have lived longer with proper doses.

“What is the implication of that dilution? Does it mean it would affect the outcomes of people’s treatment, their longevity,” asked Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath.

The drug supplier said in a statement that the variations in the chemo solution were the “result of the use of our preparation” and that it was “not consistent with the contract, the preparation or its labeling.”

“We are confident that we fully met all of the contract requirements including both volume and concentrations for these solutions,” added the company.

Dr. Eshwar Kumar, the CEO of the New Brunswick Cancer Network, says he doubts the diluted drug would have much impact on patients, but each case will have to be examined individually.

The Canadian Breast Cancer Network released a statement Wednesday recommending patients and health care providers closely monitor chemotherapy dosages to ensure the safety of patients.

“Patient safety should remain the focus of the system,” said Cathy Ammendolea, board chair, Canadian Breast Cancer Network. “It is vital that patients are informed of the impact of the diluted medications on their treatment outcomes and that adequate measures are taken to ensure that these errors don’t occur again.”

Meanwhile, Cancer Care Ontario, an oversight body that works with hospitals and regional cancer programs, says each hospital has secured new supplies of the medications and patients’ treatment cycles will not be interrupted.

“We know that for example their doses are reduced by a small amount just in the course of delivery of chemotherapy which does happen fairly frequently that it is unlikely that there is any significant impact,” said Dr. Carol Sawka of Cancer Care Ontario. “But each case is unique, and it is very difficult to provide a blanket response as to the implications of this on patients.”

The Ontario Ministry of Health says an investigation has been launched by Cancer Care Ontario and the affected hospitals to figure out the circumstances surrounding the problem.

“The College of Pharmacists is on site as we speak and Health Canada has been informed of this as well,” said Ontario Health Minister Deb Matthews.

“I want to speak to people who have been receiving chemotherapy because I think that it’s important that they hear what’s going on,” she added.

You can view more information about the class action lawsuit here.

-with files from The Canadian Press