HALIFAX -- The Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA) announced on Wednesday afternoon that patients who need the breast-cancer drug Tamoxifen are now able to get it at their community pharmacy.
“We’ve received confirmation that additional supply of tamoxifen is now available to all community pharmacies in Nova Scotia,” said Dr. Drew Bethune, the senior medical director of the NSHA Cancer Care program. “This is great news for patients and providers.”
Even with the good news, the NSHA is asking pharmacies to ration – for now.
“We are asking pharmacies to continue to limit dispensing quantities to a one-month supply until the shortage is completely resolved," Bethune said. "We are confident Nova Scotia will have enough drug to meet the needs of all patients.”
Health Canada said recently that two Canadian manufacturers of tamoxifen are predicting resolution of supply issues by the end of December -- instead of the end of January as had been earlier reported.
The NSHA also said it is winding down operation of its tamoxifen information line. It said the line will be monitored over the next couple of weeks and then shut down once supply returns to normal levels.
