Loughborough firm makes £85,000 donation to help Palestinian cancer patients

A Loughborough-based pharmaceutical business has donated medicines worth £85,000 to help treat cancer patients in a Palestinian hospital.

Medicine manufacturer Morningside Pharmaceuticals, based in Loughborough, donated 3,000 packs of Oncology drug Capecitabine tablets to charity International Health Partners (IHP), which in turn will distribute the medicine via a charitable NGO to the hospital in the Gaza Strip.

The medicine, which can be prescribed as part of a patient’s chemotherapy treatment, is being provided to the Shifa Hospital, which is the only hospital in the territory able to receive cancer medicine because it has an Oncology Unit.

Hannah Dean, partnership and programmes Officer for IHP, which specialises in supporting healthcare companies with donating medicines, said: “IHP is delighted to be partnering with Morningside Pharmaceuticals to coordinate the delivery of essential, high quality medicines to the most vulnerable people in the world, such as those in the Gaza strip.

“I have recently returned from visiting this programme in Gaza and know that this generous donation will really benefit a lot of cancer patients currently struggling to access essential medicines there. This donation of vital oncology medicine will mean that cancer patients can access the treatment they need free of charge.”

Dr Nik Kotecha OBE, chief executive of Morningside Pharmaceuticals, said: “According to the Lancet, cancer is the second-leading cause of death in the Palestinian territories, accounting for 14% of deaths, which is predicted to increase.

“Morningside Pharmaceuticals is proud to have distributed quality medicine to more than 100 countries worldwide over the past 28 years, many of which are low/middle income countries. We are delighted to have been able to make this significant donation, which we hope will help treat and save hundreds of patients.”