Are Hydroxyurea ingredients coming from China?

That's the question that's been keeping me up at nights.

American factories aren't interested in producing HU, which is pretty nasty to work with. From what I've read, our capsules come from China, India and Europe. Google AI says there's a Nigerian factory too.

We are going to feel the tariff pain, and shortages are definitely a possibility. Not getting our HU won't kill us, but for many Americans needing medications, this nonsense will be fatal.

Been following this story also. I gather that shortages and price hikes would not occur for another year or so. The latest from Reuters news service: https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/pharma-companies-expected-absorb-any-tariff-hit-short-term-2025-04-16/

Whether American manufacturers will ramp up production of HU and all the other prescription meds that come from abroad within the next year is very unlikely. So shortages and higher prices down the road are likely.

Drug companies are trying to negotiate a phase-in on tariffs for generics as mentioned in the Reuters story. But that may still lead to price hikes or shortages down the road. I see that electronics were exempted from the tariffs, but so far I don't know of any groups agitating for exemptions for meds.

I have written and called my elected reps in Congress about my concerns every week since the admin started talking about tariffs. So far no response, and none of them are holding live meetings with constituents.

"Not getting our HU won't kill us, but for many Americans needing medications, this nonsense will be fatal."

Without HU, ET patients run a higher risk of strokes and lung or heart clots that could be fatal or debilitating.

Yes, of course drug supply chain problems will shorten our lives.

But they won't kill us outright, as they will many others. Buckle up.

Actually, for me taking HU is a matter of life or death as my platelets go sky high without this medication. Early last year (2024), soon after diagnosis but before I’d started HU, my platelets went up to 2,500,000. That’s 2.5 million, not thousand. I was very sick and had very large hematomas in my left leg and hip which put me in the hospital twice with severe pain. Pain was so severe I needed narcotics, which I had never before had in my life and it scared me to take them, but it was only needed temporarily. But I was in bed for nearly two months, could barely walk, , couldn’t drive, couldn’t do laundry, couldn’t cook, couldn’t use the toilet because I couldn’t sit down (so I used adult pull-ups), and I had to have a lot of help. The HU slowly brought the platelet count down, but it took months for the hematomas to go down all the way as my body reabsorbed the blood into my bloodstream. My hematologist said it looks like I tend to bleed instead of get clots with high platelets. So yes, I’m very concerned about continued access to hydroxyurea.

didyolsn, I am so sorry you had that terrible crisis! Thank you for sharing what you endured.

Let's all follow nohrt4me's example and contact our elected officials. It is a matter of life and death.

Oh, boy, what an ordeal. I am glad you are better.

I hope you will copy your post and send it to your elected reps. They need to understand the effects of their policies.

In addition to ET patients, there are thousands of Americans with other cancers or sickle cell disease who depend on HU to manage their conditions.

And many people cannot afford expensive non-generic alternatives to HU.

I keep running into people who want to keep politics and medical issues, including cost of insurance and meds, separate. Ha! They are inseparable and this thread demonstrates that.
Right now, as is usually the case, people are more concerned with the price of autos and eggs and maybe because its unthinkable that prescription drugs and their components would not be the first things that should be exempt from any tariffs or restrictions.
These comments have spurred me on to not just call but write to my senators and representatives so that maybe, just maybe, they can give this the attention it deserves.

Please feel free to tweak and send this to your elected officials. Please SPEAK UP!

Dear X:

Like millions of other Americans, I’m worried sick about tariffs on prescription drugs made overseas.

Did you know? More than 90% of ALL prescriptions filled in our country are for generic drugs. And 90% of ALL those generic drugs are made outside the US.

Because I have a blood cancer, I must take the chemotherapeutic drug hydroxyurea (HU) every day. Without HU, I face a grave danger of fatal blood clots, as well as progression to leukemia.

HU is vital to the vast majority of the 295,000 Americans suffering from MPN blood cancers. It’s also essential to the 100,000 Americans with sickle cell disorder. And it makes a life-and-death difference in many kinds of oral cancers too.

We all desperately need HU. But not a single dose of HU is made in America. Why? Because the components of this drug, so helpful to hundreds of thousands of patients, are toxic. No U.S. manufacturer wants anything to do with it.

HU comes from China, India, Europe, plus a single factory in Nigeria. Tariffs would make it harder to get AND more expensive. This will mean disability and death for those of us with blood cancers, sickle cell anemia and oral cancers.

HU is just one of the 32,000 generic drugs Virginians need every day. Please stand up for us! Please say NO to tariffs on generic prescription drugs.

I’m Canadian, but I appreciate your help. (My container for Hydroxyurea says Zapotec Inc. Toronto Canada….but I don’t know if that is where it is manufactured, or just packaged. Still, for you, there would still be tariffs.)