Capecitabine tablets — supplier from India to the UK, GCC and Africa.

Capecitabine is supplied as 150mg and 500mg film-coated tablets — the two standard strengths worldwide. 150mg is used primarily for dose-titration around the 14-day cycle; 500mg is the workhorse strength for the 1250 mg/m² twice-daily standard. Pack formats are HDPE bottles with child-resistant closure (60 or 120 tablets) or PVC/PVdC-Aluminium blister wallets of 120 tablets that align to an NHS 14-day cycle. Multi-pack hospital cartons are available against firm orders.

Hand-foot syndrome (palmar-plantar erythrodysaesthesia) is the dose-limiting toxicity of capecitabine and the single biggest reason patients interrupt therapy. Counsel at dispense: liberal emollient from day one, avoid tight-fitting shoes, hot water and friction, and keep hands and feet cool. Escalation is protocol-driven — at grade 2 (painful erythema, swelling, interfering with activities) dose-interrupt until resolved to grade 0-1; at grade 3 (moist desquamation, severe pain, unable to perform daily tasks) permanent dose-reduction is required. A counselling leaflet written to MHRA SmPC wording is co-packed with every dispatch.

Yes. Since March 2020 the MHRA and EMA have required DPYD (dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase) testing before starting capecitabine — patients with complete or near-complete DPD deficiency develop severe, sometimes fatal toxicity at standard doses. Our destination-language pack inserts carry the DPD contraindication text verbatim from the reference SmPC, and we include a pharmacist-facing reference insert summarising the four common DPYD variants (*2A, *13, D949V, HapB3) and the recommended genotype-led dose adjustment. We supply the product, not the testing, but we make sure the counselling context ships with it.

We routinely ship capecitabine into the UK (named-patient / MHRA specials and licensed wholesale where applicable), the GCC (UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain — through licensed local importers), sub-Saharan Africa (Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, South Africa — tender and teaching-hospital supply), and Germany (§72 AMG import channels). Capecitabine features on essential oncology lists in every African market we serve. We do not supply into India.

Every consignment ships with a batch-specific Certificate of Analysis (including HPLC assay, related substances, dissolution and residual solvents), Method of Analysis, Certificate of Pharmaceutical Product (CoPP) where required, WHO-GMP certificate, manufacturing licence, Certificate of Origin (chamber-attested), destination-language PIL with DPD-deficiency and hand-foot syndrome text, cytotoxic handling leaflet, and dispatch records. Full list under oncology.

No. Capecitabine tablets store below 30°C in the original container and ship as standard ambient pharmaceutical freight — the same regime as any oral solid dosage form. Thermal validation is run on the shipper configuration to confirm below-30°C across worst-case routes, and in-transit logging is added where the tender specifies it, but no cold-chain validated lanes are required. This is a meaningful cost and logistics advantage over the injectable fluoropyrimidine 5-FU, which ships as a refrigerated or frozen vial at 2-8°C.

For registered markets with stock on hand, dispatch is typically 5-10 working days. Made-to-order batches, 6-10 weeks inclusive of QC release, dissolution testing and destination-specific artwork approval. Air-freight transit to the UK or GCC: 3-5 days; sea-freight to Africa: 18-28 days. Tablet format makes sea freight commercially viable at tender volumes, which is rarely the case for temperature-controlled oncology injectables.