Syria’s Cancer Patients Forced onto Black Market as Hospitals Run Out of Drugs

This report covers syria's cancer patients forced with key details and context.

Cancer patients in Syria are being pushed out of overstretched public hospitals and into an unregulated black market for life-saving drugs, an investigation has found. Al-Biruni University Hospital, the country’s only fully integrated public cancer center, frequently lacks essential medicines, forcing patients to buy smuggled or potentially counterfeit treatments from private pharmacies and Facebook sellers.

Wafaa Hassan, a breast cancer patient, packs her own dose, cotton, and supplies before traveling to the hospital. ‘If someone dies in the hospital, they have nothing to give them,’ she said. Her husband earns about $5 daily from a street stall, but a single dose of her required drug costs up to $1,200 on the black market. She has sold furniture to afford treatment.

The crisis has worsened as ministries trade blame. The Health Ministry says the Ministry of Higher Education is responsible for Al-Biruni, while neither responded to questions about shortages. Jamil al-Dabl, head of Syria’s oncology committee, said only 20% of needed cancer medicines are available. Over 27,000 new cancer cases were recorded in 2024.

Patients referred to charities often receive only partial support. Charity S, a major aid provider, contributed 200,000 Syrian pounds ($20) toward an MRI costing 800,000 pounds ($80). Many patients abandon charity support after finding cheaper prices elsewhere. ‘I run in every direction to give him a chance to recover,’ said Walaa Rami, whose husband has brain cancer.

A Damascus pharmacist described how smuggled drugs enter Syria from Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey. He warned that Facebook-sold medicines are ‘100 percent fake.’ The group ‘Friends of Al-Biruni Hospital’ has become a hub for patients seeking drugs, with sellers offering Kadcyla at suspiciously low prices.

Student Hiba Nasser posted a viral video saying, ‘We are dying right now.’ Her treatment stopped in February 2026 due to equipment shortages. The investigation concluded that Syria’s cancer patients are trapped in a system where hospitals have no drugs, charities offer limited help, and the black market is the last resort—even if the medicine itself may be deadly.

Article and image source: syrianobserver.com

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