WHO updates lists of essential medicines and diagnostics



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The World Health Organization (WHO) released Tuesday the latest lists of essential drugs and essential drugs. in vitro In Vitro Diagnostic Tests (IVD), which can help countries prioritize essential health products.

The updated list of essential medicines (LMEs) adds 51 new drugs, for a total of 460 medicines. The updated Essential Diagnostics List (EDL) adds 115 tests to the 113 tests from the first EDL release released last May.

The LEM focuses on drugs considered as cost-effective solutions to meet the most pressing public health needs, while the EDL program seeks to stimulate the supply of intravenous diagnostic devices for use in community settings and clinical laboratories. to support accurate diagnoses.

Both lists include new products for the treatment or detection of cancers. LEM now lists five new cancer treatments for the treatment of melanoma, lung cancer, blood and prostate, while the new EDL catalog lists 12 tests to detect solid tumors such as bad and liver cancers, among others. A new section on anatomical pathology tests in the EDL also aims to support appropriate cancer diagnoses.

"The inclusion in this list of some of the latest and most advanced cancer drugs is a strong statement that everyone deserves access to these life-saving medicines, not just those who can afford them" said the Director General of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, about the EML. The WHO cites late diagnosis as a key factor in 70% of cancer deaths in low- and middle-income countries.

The distribution of 51 new drugs includes 28 adult drugs and 23 children's medicines. Other updates include new antibiotics, such as three for the treatment of multidrug-resistant infections, oral anticoagulants for the prevention of stroke, biologics and their biosimilars for chronic inflammatory conditions, as well as than thermostable carbetocin for the prevention of postpartum hemorrhage. The LEM also contains new uses of 26 drugs included in previous versions of the list.

However, the LEM does not include medications submitted for the treatment of multiple sclerosis, nor medications for the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, called methylphenidate, because the committee " found uncertainties in earnings estimates ".

The EDL expands the scope of the first version to 69 new in vitro diagnostics to detect, diagnose and monitor diseases, including dengue and zika. It also covers 46 general tests for use in routine patient care, as well as for the detection and diagnosis of diseases such as sickle cell disease.

Another new section of the EDL includes seven categories of tests for screening donated blood, which coincide with a WHO campaign to improve the safety of blood transfusions.

EML, EDL

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