Is the price of the anti-cancer drug trametinib reliable?

Trametinib (Trametinib) is a targeted drug that can be used together with dabrafenib to treat melanoma and non-small cell lung cancer. Both drugs are targeted therapy drugs and are known as cancer growth inhibitors. This treatment is only used when a gene called BRAF changes (mutates) in the cancer cells. The BRAF gene produces a protein that causes cancer cells to grow. Trametinib and dabrafenib block this protein.

A kinase is an enzyme that promotes cell growth. There are many types of kinases that control different stages of cell growth. By blocking a special enzyme from working, the drug slows the growth of cancer cells. MEK is a protein kinase involved in the signaling pathway that transmits information about cell growth from the cell surface to DNA. MEK is also part of the BRAF pathway, another protein kinase involved in cell replication and survival. MEK and BRAF are commonly overexpressed in melanoma. Treatment with both trametinib and dabrafenib allows both MEK and BRAF signaling to be blocked, leading to inhibition of cell replication and potential cell death.

The original drug of trametinib has been launched in China and is covered by medical insurance, but it may only be available to patients who meet the indications. The price of 2mg*30 tablets is more than 10,000 yuan, and the price of 0.5mg*30 tablets is more than 5,000 yuan. The price of the original trametinib drug sold overseas is more than RMB 7,000 (the price may fluctuate due to the exchange rate) for 2mg*30 tablets. There are also generic trametinib drugs produced in other countries overseas, and their drug ingredients are basically the same as those of the original drugs sold domestically and abroad. For example, the price of a 2mg*30 tablet of a generic drug produced by a Laos pharmaceutical factory is more than 2,000 yuan (the price may fluctuate due to the exchange rate).