The UK continues to say “no” to cancer drugs due to price. If you stop and look at the prices for cancer drugs, something along the line here is going to need to balance soon. It is great and wonderful to have the R and D and great breakthroughs that are occurring almost daily, but what good does it do when they are not affordable or partially covered by insurance plans.
Here in the US, patients are foregoing cancer treatment as it is too expensive, sad that we have the drugs and treatment plans but yet still are finding the help out of reach, and in the UK some of the Pharma companies are just getting a flat “no”. Yes it is expensive to develop new drugs today, but if they are out of reach, where’s the next step to insure that treatment plans are not just a “pie in the sky” for those who suffer and need help? Is there any hope for Balance? BD
Britain's National Institute for Clinical Excellence isn't backing off its tough stance on cancer meds. The cost-effectiveness watchdog yesterday straight-armed GlaxoSmithKline's breast cancer treatment Tyverb--for the second time--despite an innovative pricing proposal from GSK. According to NICE, the drug shouldn't be used by the UK's National Health Service except in clinical trials. Glaxo has been working to persuade NICE of Tyverb's cost-effectiveness since the agency first indicated it would recommend against the treatment, which is aimed at women with advanced HER-2 cancer. Glaxo even offered to treat eligible patients for free for 12 weeks, collecting payment only for those helped by the drug after that.
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