Cancerous trends

A report in this newspaper indicates that a murky affair over the production of certain injections produced by the Pakistan Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology (Pinstech) has become even darker after the whistleblower in the affair has claimed to have received threatening calls. The issue became public in 2014 when a scientist affiliated with Pinstech claimed that certain radioactive injections produced by the institute were contaminated with undesirable radio-nuclides. The former quality controller in Pinstech approached the Supreme Court and the National Commission on Human Rights (NCHR) for an investigation into the matter. The SC had taken up the case, but had dismissed it after being unsure on how to proceed with the matter. With the matter now with the NCHR, it is high time that a proper investigation into this fairly serious issue was conducted to resolve the matter one way or another. The concerns of the former scientist-whistleblower are fairly serious and the matter requires urgent notice. The scientist has alleged that radioactive compound produced by Pinstech, which is used to determine the exact location of cancer cells, could be causing cancer itself. The concern is that all 14 hospitals operating under the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) have been supplied the contaminated drug since 2011.
The report in this newspaper points to an audit by Moody’s International Certification Group in February 2013 of a batch of the drug which points to higher values than normal of a particular radioactive material used in manufacturing the substance. We feel the matter needs to be resolved in the clearest manner possible. It seems the issue has been disposed of without being looked at it with utmost seriousness, which includes the fact that Pinstech has not responded in a thorough manner to this newspaper’s investigating journalist who broke the story. Last year, Pinstech admitted that certain batches were contaminated but claimed that they had not been sent to hospitals. This should be an easy issue to verify. If there is nothing to the story, then it should be easy for the issue to die down. However, if the whistleblower is right, then there needs to be a proper inquiry into how such a health risk has been allowed to pass in the name of treatment.It must also be investigated whether the contaminated drug was given to any patient by any of the hospitals involved. More seriously, the issue of who should investigate the matter needs to be resolved as neither the SC nor the NCHR are the correct organs to look into the issue. With no clear conclusion over the allegations of contamination in cancer drugs, questions will continue to be asked about Pakistan’s ability to use nuclear technology for peaceful means. It is for everyone’s benefit to investigate this issue without opting for cover-ups.