Health Minister Nalinda Jayatissa yesterday acknowledged that the shortage of the cancer drug Filgrastim continues in government hospitals, but said the supplier had assured that a consignment would be airlifted within a week.Speaking at the weekly briefing to announce Cabinet decisions, the Minister said limited quantities of Filgrastim procured through local purchases may be available at some hospitals. However, the Medical Supplies Division (MSD) is currently not supplying the drug to hospitals.

He said the shortage arose after a consignment of 160,000 vials supplied for 2026 had to be rejected for failing to meet the specifications of the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA).According to the Minister, the prefilled syringes were rejected because they did not carry the labels required under NMRA regulations.Jayatissa said the supplier had assured the Ministry that a consignment would be airlifted within a week. He added that the supplier registered for the 2027 requirement had also agreed to airlift a consignment of the drug shortly.“The stock which will be brought down by the supplier for 2027 will be released to the market. The MSD cannot purchase the said stock. However, the MSD will purchase the drug from the market under local purchase,” he said in response to a question.

The Minister told Parliament last week that the country was facing a temporary shortage of Filgrastim injections and assured that the situation was expected to be resolved within about a week.