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NHS patients are being put at risk because profiteering pharmacists are selling prescription drugs to Europe.

Unscrupulous speculators cashing in on the weak pound have created a shortage of at least 40 drugs, a Daily Mail investigation has found.

They include treatments for cancer, high blood pressure, Parkinson's and high cholesterol. 

Among well-known drugs on a critical list are Arimidex and Femara, both for breast cancer, Actonel tablets for osteoporosis and cholesterol-lowering statins.

Of most immediate concern, however, are shortages of drugs for schizophrenia and leukaemia and immunosuppressants to prevent organ rejection in transplant patients

As many as one in ten pharmacists, as well as wholesalers, dispensing doctors and even NHS hospitals are making money in an export trade worth an estimated £360million a year.

Government guidance condemns it as unethical, but there is nothing ministers can do as it is entirely legal for drugs to be traded in this way within
the EU.

The problem became critical after the pound collapsed against the euro  -  making it worth selling high-value drugs abroad because the price here was relatively low.

With desperate patients worried about getting their medicines, many pharmacists are spending hours on the phone trying to track down scarce supplies.

Manufacturers have set up emergency hotlines to ensure deliveries.

Sandy Craine, founder of the CML Support Group UK, said there were increasing reports of difficulties for patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia
getting hold of the drug Glivec, which keeps the disease at bay.

She said: 'Last week a woman in Derbyshire was told she couldn't have her usual three-month supply. She could only have a month's supply at the wrong dose  -  she would have had to break up tablets to try and
get the right dose.

'She was very distressed and drove for an hour and a half to see a specialist at a Nottingham hospital where she could get a prescription from the pharmacy. But she was told even they
are having trouble with stock.

'This is a big problem and it needs to be sorted urgently.'

Research by consultants IMS suggest as many as 11 per cent of the 12,600 UK pharmacies could be exporting drugs, along with a small proportion of
dispensing doctors and some wholesalers.

It is estimated that £30million worth of medicines meant for NHS patients are being diverted to Europe each month.

The scale of the trade is shown by figures from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, the body which grants the
licences needed to export drugs to the EU.

Last year 203 new licences were issued, almost twice as many as the previous year. It brought the total to 1,357. This year there have already been over 100
applications for the £1,737 licences.

At least one hospital, the Royal Surrey County in Guildford, exported drugs to Europe last year, making a £300,000 profit.

It stopped in January  -  six months after being told by the Government's chief pharmacist that the practice was unethical  -  and says it never
sold drugs on the short-supply list.

Junior health minister Mike O'Brien, who has called a summit of those involved in the supply chain on March 2, says there is 'increasing concern' over the actions of a 'few unscrupulous people'.

He said: 'Some pharmacists are getting calls asking if they have particular medicines and offering to buy them for export for a bigger
profit.

'Some have been tempted by the rewards.'

Richard Ascroft, director of corporate affairs at drug maker Lilly UK, said: 'We are definitely concerned about this. Drug prices in the UK are
among the lowest in Europe for a number of reasons and this has created
opportunities for export trading.

'We are over-supplying the market to make sure patients are not left without the medicine they need, but we do believe longer-term solutions need to be put in place.'

John Turk, chief executive of the National Pharmacy Association, denied pharmacists were cashing in.

He said: 'The vast majority of community pharmacists have nothing to do with exporting medicines. In the face of shortages, they are putting in
hours of extra work each day sourcing medicines to ensure timely supply
to patients.'

Neil Paton of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society said he 'did not recognise' the figure of one in ten pharmacists trading abroad.

He said: 'We need to look again at the supply chain to make sure patients can get the medicines they need when they want them.'

Tory spokesman Mark Simmonds said: 'The rise in the number of dealer licences being issued is extremely concerning.

'I have been calling on the Government to tackle this issue for many months, and I am concerned that Labour's recently trumpeted summit is
not taking place until next month.'

The Department of Health said the legal and ethical duties of ensuring a 'smooth supply' of NHS medicines have been made clear to everyone involved. It said there had
been no breaches of those duties so far.