New Delhi, Nov. 1 -- The Centre's decision to cap trade margins on 137 non-scheduled anti-cancer drugs has reduced the maximum retail prices (MRPs) of 484 out of 643 listed medicine packs, but left nearly one in four packs unchanged, raising questions about how much relief the measure will bring to cancer patients, an analysis of National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) data has found. The NPPA, which released its list of "Revised MRP of Non-Scheduled Anti-Cancer Drugs" on Tuesday, showed that prices of 159 packs did not change. "Selected medicines receive cuts exceeding 90%, while 159 entries show no reduction. Several unchanged packs retain prices of multiple lakh rupees," said an analysis by Access to Medicines and Treatment India, which highlighted the measure 's limitations and called for broader policy interventions to make cancer treatment affordable and accessible. On October 17, the NPPA announced Trade Margin Rationalisation (TMR) for 137 non-scheduled anti-cancer drugs in the public interest, aimed at addressing excessive trade margins, making cancer treatment more affordable and improving access to medicines. Manufacturers were asked to submit revised price lists to NPPA. K.C. Jain, an Agra-based advocate, had earlier petitioned the Supreme Court seeking changes to drug price controls. The analysis found that 204 packs had either no price reduction or a cut of up to 10%, while 275 packs recorded reductions of more than 50%. Prices of only 124 packs were reduced by 70% or more, and just five packs saw cuts of 90% or above. "Big pharma" products of that actually burnt a hole in the pocket have largely seen no cuts, said experts. Of 56 entries priced above Rs.1 lakh, 53 remained unchanged, the data showed. RPG Life Sciences' Anarzole, a 1 mg anastrozole tablet used in hormone-sensitive breast cancer was reduced from Rs.695.76 to Rs.73 for a pack of 10 tablets. Dr Reddy's Laboratories' Azacytin, a 100 mg azacitidine injection, now costs Rs.1,495.04, down from Rs.6,337. Abbott Healthcare's Bevacizab injection (100 mg/4 ml) has been reduced from Rs.21,767.70 to Rs.5,930.13 per vial. Natco Pharma's Dasanat 20, a pack of 60 dasatinib tablets , now costs Rs.1,085.93, compared with Rs.2,812.50 earlier. RPG Life Sciences' Debrumab 60 mg, a denosumab injection, was revised from Rs.22,031.25 to Rs.5,941 per pre-filled syringe. "The price drop is a clear example of how hospitals were actually exploiting the patients in collaboration with pharmaceutical companies. However, we can see these cuts have by and large been on generics and biosimilars. There are same molecules but different prices as the originator has not been slashed. In effect, it creates a situation where hospitals can still keep these high-valued brands and keep away the low-valued ones and make more money," said KM Gopakumar, senior researcher and legal advisor at Delhi-based Third World Network. He added that generic and biosimilar medicines had seen substantial price corrections, often exceeding 70-90%, but regulating trade margins alone would not ensure affordability or bridge the price gap between original drugs and their generic or biosimilar alternatives. The difference in prices of medicines containing the same molecules, he said, needed urgent review. The revised MRPs will come into effect from November 9....