Is Gilteritinib included in medical insurance?

Gilteritinib (Gilteritinib) is a targeted therapy drug mainly used to treat acute myeloid leukemia (AML), especially those with FLT3 mutations. FLT3 is a common cell surface receptor tyrosine kinase whose mutations can lead to the proliferation and survival of leukemia cells, thereby aggravating the severity of the disease. Giritinib inhibits the activity of FLT3 and blocks its signaling pathway, thereby effectively reducing the proliferation of leukemia cells and promoting their apoptosis. This mechanism allows giritinib to show good efficacy in the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory AML, making it an important treatment option.

Clinical studies of giritinib have shown that for patients who have received at least one previous therapy, the use of giritinib can significantly improve the patient's overall response rate and progression-free survival, while also improving the patient's quality of life. These studies laid the foundation for the clinical application of giritinib, making it widely recognized in specific populations.

As for the issue of medical insurance, giritinib is currently on the market in China, but has not yet been included in the national medical insurance directory. This means that patients need to bear relatively high drug costs out of pocket when using this drug, which puts a certain burden on some patients with limited financial conditions. Although some places may have local medical insurance policies that cover part of the cost, overall, the out-of-pocket cost of giritinib still troubles many patients.

When faced with high drug costs, patients and doctors can work together to explore other treatment options, or consider using generic versions of giritinib, which are often similar in ingredients and efficacy to the original drug, but are relatively less expensive, providing patients with more choices. However, when choosing a generic drug, patients need to pay attention to the source and quality of the drug to ensure its safety and effectiveness.

Reference materials:https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7517771/