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Hello David,
My mother, 82 years old, recently transformed from MDS to AML and she too is not a candidate for conventional chemotherapy. Her hematologist thought that Vidaza would be the best option. Although Vidaza is not commercially available in Canada, patients can access the drug through Health Canada's Compassionate Use Program (Special Access Program). The hematologist needs to complete the paperwork and send the request to Health Canada. The requests are reviewed on a case by case basis and once Health Canada approves the request, then the doctor can have the drug shipped from the manufacturer to the hospital or oncology clinic. The whole process took about 4 weeks and my mom started treatment with Vidaza today. The sad part is that she is so frail and her counts are so low because of the AML, we're not sure if she will be able to tolerate the treatment. (We are all praying very hard that it's not too late and that she still has a chance).
It is frustrating for Canadians to know that there is a drug available to treat this dreadful disease, but unfortunately in Canada it seems that we need to go through hoops to get access to the drug.
Let's hope that things will progress in the right direction and that patients in Canada can easily access this potentially life-saving drug.
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