Hundreds of mesothelioma sufferers across Great Britain heaved a sigh of relief yesterday when the country’s National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) issued “guidance” for the cancer drug Alimta, currently the only FDA-approved drug designed specifically for the treatment of malignant pleural mesothelioma where surgery is not indicated.
“Following a two-and-a-half year approval process, which included two appeals, the guidance means that primary care trusts (PCTs) will be able and obliged to fund pemetrexed [Alimta] for all NHS patients with mesothelioma for whom the treatment is suitable,” notes an article in Medical News Today and several British publications.
The medical community had hoped that the drug would be widely available last year, but due to a series of appeals against the NICE recommendation (largely due to cost) the approval was delayed for several months. For mesothelioma patients, a delay of a month or two can cost them their lives.
Dr Gary Middleton, a Consultant Medical Oncologist at Royal Surrey County Hospital applauded the long-awaited decision. “Patients suffering with this disease have always deserved a decision based on need and not cost and NICE have now granted that. However, the time taken to arrive at this decision has added more mental and physical pain for many and for some it has simply come too late. To place treatment choices at the mercy of a ponderously slow system geared towards cost will inevitably mean that outcomes for cancer patients in the UK will lag behind those in the rest of the developed world.”
“The Government must now ensure a level playing field of access to Alimta across the UK for workers suffering from mesothelioma,” said Mick Clapham MP, chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Occupational Safety and Health, noting that the drug has been in use in Scotland for more than two years, having been accepted for use by the Scottish Medicines Consortium in July 2005.
“At last this means an end to the postcode lottery which has meant that some patients have received the treatment while those in neighboring PCT areas have not. We urge PCTs to address the needs of mesothelioma patients who have waited so long for this decision and to allow funding straight away and not to wait until the three-month implementation period is over before they allow access to this treatment,” added Tony Whitston, Chair of The Asbestos Support Groups’ Forum.
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