24.08.20
Landmark NHS cystic fibrosis drug deal comes into effect
From today, thousands of NHS cystic fibrosis patients in England will have access to a ‘transformative’ treatment for the condition, benefiting from a landmark deal struck by NHS England last month.
NHS patients will become some of the first in Europe to be able to receive the ‘triple combination therapy’ treatment, which has shown to significantly improve lung function, helping people with cystic fibrosis breathe more easily, enhancing their overall quality of life.
European regulators gave the treatment the green light, setting live the previously struck deal with NHS England to get the drug out and available to patients as soon as it was licensed.
The treatment has been described as having shown evidence of being ‘truly life-transforming’ by the UK Cystic Fibrosis Medical Association.
More than 7,000 people with cystic fibrosis in England are likely to benefit from the therapy.
As part of the commercial deal struck by NHS England, equivalent terms were also secured for cystic fibrosis patients in Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland – paving the way to full UK-wide access.
NHS National Medical Director Professor Stephen Powis, said: “At the same time as staff came together to put in a herculean effort to treat over 108,000 for coronavirus in hospitals, they also continued providing round the clock care for patients with long term conditions such as cystic fibrosis, and this landmark deal has put NHS patients at the front of the queue for transformational treatment.
“The NHS has developed world-leading commercial capabilities, enabling us to strike such landmark deals with the pharmaceutical industry and support people with cystic fibrosis to lead longer, healthier, better quality lives.”
The terms of the deal landed by NHS England also mean that as many as 300 patients with some rarer genetic mutations, which fall outside of the scope of the European licensing body’s considerations, will also now be able to benefit from other pharmaceutical drugs produced by the same supplier, offering a potential lifeline to some of those with limited treatment options.