Chinese Manufacturer of Tainted Cancer Drugs at Center of Nationwide Drug Scandal

A New York Times article by Jake Hooker and Walt Bogdanich Shanghai Hualian, a large Chinese state-owned pharmaceutical company that exported drugs to dozens of countries, including the U.S., has been the subject of a national drug scandal in China because of harm, including paralysis, to nearly 200 Chinese cancer patients.  The factory that produced the drugs has been shut down by drug regulators and the head of the plant and another official have been detained by the Shanghai police in connection with their criminal investigation of the problem.  Shanghai Hualian is the sole supplier to the U.S. of mifepristone, the abortion pill  known as RU-486, although that drug was made at a different factory.  The U.S. FDA has indicated that there is no link between the two drug producing facilities.  These problems have arisen in the wake of continuing concerns about the safety of Chinese-manufactured products.
MKS