What is the medical insurance price of giritinib?

Gilteritinib is a cancer drug used to treat adults with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a cancer of the white blood cells. Giritinibis used when acute myeloid leukemia has come back or has not improved after previous treatment, and is only used in patients whose cancer cells have specific changes (mutations) in the gene for a protein called FLT3. The active ingredient in gilitinib is gilteritinib.

Acute myeloid leukemia is rare, and giritinib has been designated as an "orphan drug" (a drug used for rare diseases). Gilteritinib blocks the action of enzymes called tyrosine kinases, specifically one called FLT3, which normally controls the growth and division of white blood cells. In patients with FLT3 mutations, FLT3 is overactive and stimulates the growth of too many white blood cells. By blocking FLT3, gilitinib is expected to stop the growth of white blood cells, thereby slowing the progression of cancer.

The original drug of giritinib has been launched in China, but it has not yet been included in the medical insurance. The price of each box of 40mg*42 tablets may be more than 20,000 yuan, and the price of the Hong Kong version of the original drug is about 90,000 yuan per box. The price of the European version of the original drug, 40mg*84 tablets, per box listed overseas is around RMB 210,000 (the price may fluctuate due to exchange rates), which is very expensive. Generic drugs of giritinib are currently produced and sold overseas, and their drug ingredients are basically the same as those of the original drugs sold domestically and abroad. For example, the price of 40mg*84 tablets per box produced by a Laos pharmaceutical factory is more than 4,000 yuan (the price may fluctuate due to the exchange rate).