It looked for a while that Marchese Hospital Solutions’ explanation for the diluted chemotherapy drug bags may have had legs, suggesting there was miscommunication between hospital purchasing agent Medbuy and Marchese over the use of the product.
Marchese claimed it was their understanding that the bags of chemotherapy drugs they were preparing were to be administered as a single dose entirely to one patient, when in fact the contents of the bags were being used for multiple doses.
Appearing before a Ontario legislature committee probing how 1200 cancer patients received diluted doses of chemotherapy, Anne Miao, director of pharmacy for rival corporation Baxter, told the committee that Marchese’s explanation was far-fetched.
According to today’s Toronto Star, Miao told the committee that dosage is based on the patient’s surface area, and “a four gram dose to be used as a single-patient dose, using a standard five foot 10 inch tall patient, you’re looking at a patient of over 900 pounds.”
OPSEU Diablogue 