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MFDA has warned the public after a counterfeit batch of the cancer drug Opdivo was found imported and sold in the country.
Mariyam Adheela
The Maldives Food and Drug Administration (MFDA) has issued a public warning after a counterfeit version of the cancer injection Opdivo was found circulating in the Maldives.
In a notice published in the Gazette, MFDA said the falsified product was being distributed under the brand name Opdivo, a medicine manufactured by Swords Laboratories Unlimited Company in Ireland.
The agency said the counterfeit product was imported into the Maldives in imitation of the genuine medicine.
According to MFDA, the falsified product carries batch number 8081399. The import, sale and use of the identified batch have been strictly prohibited in the Maldives.
MFDA urged consumers, healthcare providers and sellers to carefully check the batch number and immediately stop using the product if it matches the falsified batch.
Opdivo, also known by its generic name nivolumab, is an immunotherapy medicine used to treat several types of cancer, including melanoma, lung cancer and kidney cancer.
The medicine works by blocking the PD-1 protein on T-cells, allowing the immune system to better recognise and attack cancer cells.
The warning comes amid wider international concerns over counterfeit cancer medicines. The World Health Organization (WHO) has previously warned about falsified batches of another cancer medicine, Darzalex, detected in different countries.
