CEO of the North West Regional Health Authority (NWRHA) Salisha Baksh said she could not give any information in relation to the theft of cancer drugs from the St James Medical Facility, since the matter is being pursued by the police.

Western Division police said they received a report of stolen drugs from the centre on Monday after staff discovered the storage area broken into and the medicine missing.

The stolen drugs include succinyl choline, bevacizumab, bleomycin, cetuximab, traztuzumab, tocilizumab, docetaxel, cyclophosphamide, insulin, oxytocin, rituximab, fulvestrant and epirubacin.

Newsday was informed by pharmacist that five of the drugs need to be kept in cold storage. These drugs, bevacizumab, cetuximab, traztuzumab, tocilizumab and rituximab are all biological monoclonal antibodies that require cold storage to keep stability.

One of the drugs, tocilizumab, an immuno-suppressive drug, which is approved of for rheumatoid arthritis, has been used off-label to treat covid19 internationally. It is included in a list of drugs issued by the Health Ministry on Friday of drugs authorised by the World Health Organization for use in patients with severe or critical covid19.

Police said the drugs came into the medical facility last Wednesday and were secured up to Friday. On Monday they went missing.

The quantity of drugs stolen has not been divulged, with police only saying that it was a “substantial amount.”

When asked if any staff at the centre were suspects, police said they were following several leads and considered everyone a suspect until proven otherwise. They suspect the thieves may be hoping to sell the drugs to private institutions.

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