NEW YORK TIMES: The two companies that make vaccines against cervical cancer announced Thursday that they would cut their prices to the world’s poorest countries below $5 per dose, eventually making it possible for millions of girls to be protected against a major deadly cancer.
Thanks to Pap tests, fatal cervical cancers are almost unknown today in rich countries. But the disease kills an estimated 275,000 women a year in poor countries where Pap tests are impractical and the vaccine is far too expensive for the average woman to afford, so the price cut could lead to a significant advance in women’s health.
The offer exemplifies a trend that started a decade ago with AIDS drugs: pharmaceutical companies, under pressure not to ignore the world’s poor, provide low prices on their newest products as long as donors guarantee large orders and pay for them… (more)
EDITOR: Another article that should be read in total because of the important information not covered above.
