Call to make cell & gene therapies affordable
cell and gene therapies
are good, but work towards making them affordable," Prof AK Sood, principal scientific advisor (PSA) to the Union govt told researchers Thursday.
But what are these therapies that Sood spoke about? They are cutting-edge medical treatments that aim to cure diseases at the source rather than just manage symptoms.
Gene therapy
fixes faulty genes. And
cell therapy
uses specially prepared cells - often taken from the patient or a donor - to help the body heal, or fight disease.
These are already being used to treat serious conditions like blood cancers and rare genetic diseases. But each treatment can cost lakhs or even crores, making them out of reach for most people. "If we want to make them widely accessible in India, we need a much larger and coordinated effort," Sood told researchers and innovators at India AMR Innovation Workshop held at C-CAMP here.
He said the Centre is working on a "Cell and Gene Therapy Mission" that will bring together several ministries and departments. Citing ImmunoACT - a CAR-T cell therapy for cancer treatment that uses the patient's own immune cells to fight the disease - developed with govt support as a good example, he said private companies are now stepping in to take it forward.
Pointing out that India lacks strong laws to stop over-the-counter sale of antibiotics, which is a major cause of
antimicrobial resistance (AMR)
, Sood blamed fake doctors, easy access to antibiotics, and high consultation fees for irresponsible usage.
Karnataka IT-BT secretary Ekroop Caur spoke about the rising danger of AMR, saying even people who don't misuse antibiotics can be affected because of what's happening in animals and plants. "That's why Karnataka launched a new AMR action plan this year."
C-CAMP CEO and director Taslimarif Saiyed warned AMR could lead to 10 million deaths a year if urgent action isn't taken.
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