“It is the patient who has to make the request for these advanced drugs. So, making these drugs more visible to the public so they can make themselves more available, give the patient all the information you need in order to seek them out,” said Bassette. “Because right now, what I’ve found is that a lot of these new drugs that are potentially available, unless you know where to look and how to find them, you may not see them, and because your doctor can’t suggest them to you based on how the system works now, you may not ever know about them and missed out an opportunity to take advantage of this.”
According to Dr. MacDonald, the best place to access information about the new program is directly on the
page on the Canada Drug Agency’s website. It explains the time-limited reimbursement program and how it will help improve access.
As for finding out which drugs are available, that may take more work. For blood cancer, specifically, Bassette suggests going to the
Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Canada
website for more information on drugs, but patient-centric organizations for other diseases are also more likely to stay on top of these things.
That said, with the new program in place, drug companies will be able to promote their latest products more effectively, which will be very helpful in informing those dealing with debilitating diseases that could be remedied or helped with an up-and-coming medication or therapy.