02.11.12
Draft NICE approval for two expensive skin cancer drugs
New draft NICE guidance means people with advanced melanoma should get access to two life-prolonging drugs.
Vemurafenib (Zelboraf), turned down in June because of its high cost - £1,750 a week for only months of extra life – has now been approved following additional data supplied to NICE by manufacturer Roche about its effectiveness, and a discount offered on the drug.
The drug targets the BRAF genetic mutation, which about half of people with metastatic melanoma have – but that is still fewer than 1,000 people a year who would be eligible for treatment.
Another drug to treat advanced skin cancer, ipilimumab (Yerboy), a monoclonal antibody made by Bristol-Myers Squibb, has also achieved draft approval.
That manufacturer has also agreed a discounted patient access scheme for the NHS.
The guidance is now going out to consultation.
Professor Carole Longson, health technology evaluation centre director at NICE, said: “Advanced melanoma can significantly affect patients' quality of life and without effective new therapies, the prognosis for advanced disease is very poor.
“For many years the treatments available for this condition have been very limited and in some cases restricted to palliative care. However, there are now a number of new treatments being developed and vemurafenib and ipilimumab are the first two that Nice has been asked to review.
“These new draft recommendations represent really good news for skin cancer patients. Vemurafenib and ipilimumab are breakthrough treatments that can potentially significantly affect prognosis for these patients and we are very pleased that the manufacturers have worked with us so that we are now able to recommend both ipilimumab and vemurafenib.”
Visit www.nice.org.uk/guidance/index.jsp?action=folder&o=61277
Tell us what you think – have your say below or email [email protected]