543 Brands Price Slashed: Cancer Drugs to Get Up to 90% Cheaper After Supreme Court Slams 'Daylight Robbery'

Patients battling life-threatening cancers across India are set to get major financial relief, with the Central Government slashing retail prices for 543 brands of anti-cancer medicines by up to 90 per cent. The steep cost cuts on critical therapies come weeks after a stern warning from the Supreme Court, which lambasted pharmaceutical manufacturers and regulatory bodies over unbridled trade margins on life-saving drugs.

The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA), under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers, announced that the revised Maximum Retail Prices (MRPs) will come into force starting November 9, 2026.

Supreme Court Called Huge Markups 'Daylight Dacoity'

The regulatory crackdown comes directly on the heels of scathing observations made by an apex court bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta during hearings in late September.

Examining the glaring gap between wholesale costs and final retail labels, the top court highlighted instances where anti-cancer drugs supplied to distributors for ₹2,700 were being sold to patients for a staggering ₹27,000.

Calling the practice "broad daylight dacoity" and "pure extortion" targeting desperate families and state healthcare funds, the court directed the Union government to act against predatory pricing models.

Cap on Trade Margins Triggers Price Drop

Following the court's intervention, the NPPA issued a directive on October 17 applying Trade Margin Rationalisation (TMR) across 137 non-scheduled anti-cancer drugs. Pharma companies were ordered to slash excessive markups and submit revised pricing details to the regulator.

The latest list published by the government covers 543 specific formulations from major pharma manufacturers based on submissions processed through October 27.

The price cuts span key oncology treatments, including advanced immunotherapy regimens for over 20 types of cancer, as well as targeted therapies for breast, prostate, colon, ovarian, and cervical cancers.

Major Price Reductions for Key Oncology Drugs

While the ministry has not declared an overall average percentage cut, data released by the government reveals drastic reductions across widely prescribed medications:

• Anastrozole (1 mg tablet by RPG Life Sciences): Used in breast cancer treatment, a strip of 10 tablets drops from ₹695.76 to ₹73.00—a reduction of nearly 90 per cent.
• Fulvestrant (50 mg injection by RPG Life Sciences): A 5 ml vial slashes down from ₹26,072.16 to ₹5,491.00, down by over 78 per cent.
• Bevacizumab (100 mg/4 ml injection by Abbott Healthcare): Down from ₹21,767.70 to ₹5,930.13.
• Denosumab (60 mg injection by RPG Life Sciences): Used for advanced bone and breast cancers, dropped from ₹22,031.25 to ₹5,941.00.
• Azacitidine (100 mg injection by Dr. Reddy's Laboratories): Cut from ₹6,337.00 to ₹1,495.04.
• Dasatinib (20 mg tablet by Natco Pharma): A pack of 60 tablets reduced from ₹2,812.50 to ₹1,085.93.

Portal to Reflect Dynamic Updates

The NPPA confirmed that the revised price portal will be updated dynamically as remaining drug manufacturers file their recalculated MRPs. Authorities expect the price cuts to significantly lower out-of-pocket expenses for cancer patients and lower procurement bills for government-funded health insurance schemes across the country.