Stephen Whitehead, ABPI CEO, comments on NHS England's decision to delist 16 cancer medicines.

 Stephen Whitehead said: “NHS England’s decision to delist 16 cancer medicines with 25 separate clinical uses is extremely disappointing and a significant blow to the health and wellbeing of future NHS patients. These medicines have been proven to be effective through clinical trials and have already provided benefit to thousands of NHS patients through their prior availability on the Cancer Drugs Fund.

“Whilst we are pleased that treatment for existing patients will be protected as a result of this decision and that some new medicines will be included in the CDF it does not detract from our longstanding belief that the CDF and this re-evaluation process was fundamentally flawed. The CDF remains a sticking plaster. The solution to this issue remains the urgent reform of NICE which will ensure that the right patients get the right medicines at the right time whatever their condition.”

For more details, go to: http://www.abpi.org.uk/media-centre/newsreleases/2015/Pages/120115.aspx