Dying to Survive (2018) on Netflix
NR20181h 57m
Cheng Yong's aphrodisiac shop earns almost nothing, and his father needs brain surgery. A man in thick surgical masks offers him money to bring a cheap leukemia drug from India.
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- Netflix4.1/5
- IMDb7.8/109,280 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes86%
Plot summary
Cheng Yong is in financial trouble. His shop sells aphrodisiacs and has not turned a profit for a long time, and his father needs brain surgery the family cannot pay for. A man wrapped in thick layers of surgical masks visits and offers Cheng money to bring a cheap drug back from India. The Swiss leukemia medicine imatinib is protected by patents and costs more than most patients in China can afford. India sells an inexpensive generic version of the same drug. Importing medicine without a license is illegal, and the company that holds the patent is suing the Indian government. Cheng takes the risk.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Dying to Survive (2018)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- China's Premier Li Keqiang cited Dying to Survive in an appeal to regulators to "speed up price cuts for cancer drugs" and "reduce the burden on families", after the film sparked debate about the cost of healthcare in China.
- Dying to Survive is based on the real-life case of Lu Yong, a Chinese leukemia patient who smuggled cheap generic cancer medicine from India for 1,000 Chinese cancer sufferers in 2004.
