Kerala health ministry has ordered a departmental inquiry into the allegations that a few doctors at the Regional Cancer Centre (RCC) Thiruvananthapuram is supporting a drug mafia operating in the capital.

Sources from the health ministry told Pharmabiz that the Cancer Centre is functioning smoothly and there is no complaint of any kind of corruption or malfeasance pointing any doctor or other staff working there.

The instruction for enquiry came in the wake of some allegations raised by some local media that certain doctors in the RCC are advising the patients to purchase some expensive medicines from some agents who are having no drug license or permanent pharmacy store.

According to a source, Rituximab, the newer and expensive medicine used for treating rheumatoid arthritis and B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, is sold illegally by some persons in the periphery of the hospital area with the support of a group of doctors working in the cancer centre. Rituximab, sold under the trade names Rituxan and MabThera, is procured from the multinational Roche by certain unscrupulous elements without having proper drug license or pharmacy and sold to patients having wealthy background after paying a certain dividend to the doctors.

Even though the same medicine with a lower price, manufactured by Indian companies such as Dr Reddy's Lab, is available in all the pharmacy stores in the capital, the doctors are insisting the relatives of the patients to get the medicine from the clandestine agents.

When contacted the state drugs controller P George said such allegations have been prevailing there for years and actions will be initiated if anybody is found selling medicines without availing a license from his office. When asked about the reported network of the doctors by prescribing high price medicines to be bought from particular agents, he said he is unable to comment on that.

While speaking to Pharmabiz, Dr Jayaprakash Madhavan, the Superintend of the RCC, said all the allegations being raised against some doctors in the hospital are not true and confirmed that there was no shortage of any medicine in the hospital's pharmacy. "We don't want any medicine from outside. We have the availability of all kinds of medicines including the newer ones, required for our treatment. The costly medicines are sold here with very low price, even one vial of Rituximab is sold here for Rs. 70,000 only when it costs Rs. 1,07,000 outside ", he said. However, he added that only the rich people are able to afford these medicines.

While responding to the allegation, some relatives of certain patients said one vial (500mg) of the same medicine from an Indian company is available at a price of Rs 40,000 , but the doctors are not interested to accept that medicine as they will get only less commission compared to that from the multinational company.