Cancer Sufferers' Hope Dies
Watchdog rules against new treatment for lung cancer.
Thousands of lung cancer sufferers ar set to be denied the potentially life-extending drug Tarceva, under guidance from the govenment's health watchdog.
Tarceva is considered to be one of the few significant advances against lung cancer in the past decade. For an average 125-day course of treatment, the drug costs £6,796. Tarceva is designed for patients who have failed at a chemotherapy regime and could be effective for 80% of lung cancer sufferers.
The drug does not actually offer a cure, however it does increase the chance of being alive after a year by 42%. This life-extending drug was ruled out on the ground of cost by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE). Cancer Research is fighting back by writing to Nice to express the opposition to this decision of banning Tarceva.
In a statement, Nice's chief exectutive Andrew Dillon said that the drugs do not represent a good sourse of limited NHS recouces.
Tarceva is considered to be one of the few significant advances against lung cancer in the past decade. For an average 125-day course of treatment, the drug costs £6,796. Tarceva is designed for patients who have failed at a chemotherapy regime and could be effective for 80% of lung cancer sufferers.
The drug does not actually offer a cure, however it does increase the chance of being alive after a year by 42%. This life-extending drug was ruled out on the ground of cost by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE). Cancer Research is fighting back by writing to Nice to express the opposition to this decision of banning Tarceva.
In a statement, Nice's chief exectutive Andrew Dillon said that the drugs do not represent a good sourse of limited NHS recouces.