NICE has issued preliminary draft guidance not recommending pomalidomide for treating multiple myeloma after two previous treatments including lenalidomide and bortezomib. 

Celgene, the company that makes pomalidomide, did not provide sufficient evidence of the effectiveness of the drug compared with current care. Even by using the company’s analyses, the drug, also known as Imnovid, did not offer enough benefit to justify its high price.

Multiple myeloma is a type of cancer that affects plasma cells, a type of white blood cell found in the bone marrow. Although it is incurable, there are a number of treatment options to help slow the progress of the disease and improve quality of life. The choice of treatment would differ for each individual, but NICE recommends thalidomide for most patients as a first line treatment. NICE also recommends bortezomib for people who are unable to take thalidomide and also as an option after the first treatment has stopped working. In people who have had at least two prior therapies NICE recommends lenalidomide. This appraisal considers the use of pomalidomide for treating multiple myeloma after third or subsequent relapse.

Commenting on the draft guidance, Sir Andrew Dillon, NICE chief executive, said: “Multiple myeloma is an incurable disease, but NICE-recommended treatment options thalidomide, bortezomib and lenalidomide – which can slow the progress of the condition and help relieve symptoms – have greatly improved the length of time someone can live with the disease and their quality of life.

“We are disappointed not to be able to recommend pomalidomide in this preliminary guidance, but the analyses submitted by Celgene, the company that makes the drug, did not show how well the drug works compared to the other treatments available. Also, Celgene’s own cost effectiveness analysis clearly demonstrated that the drug does not offer enough benefit to justify its price.”

For more details, go to: https://www.nice.org.uk/news/press-and-media/nice-issues-preliminary-guidance-on-pomalidomide-for-blood-cancer