Posted by Michael Wonder on 11 Apr 2017
'Gamechanging' cancer drug rejected for use on NHS
11 April 2017 - Nivolumab deemed too expensive for the benefits but cancer specialists urge NHS and manufacturers to reach compromise.
A gamechanging immunotherapy drug that can extend the life of patients with advanced head and neck cancer has been turned down for use in the NHS because of its high cost.
Nivolumab is one of a new class of drug that stimulates the patient’s own immune system to fight the cancer. Immunotherapy drugs have had some spectacular successes in some patients with some cancers. But although nivolumab can give people with advanced head and neck cancers an extra three months of life – when survival expectancy at present is around six months – the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has rejected it.
