31 August 2017 - Novartis’s new gene-modifying cancer therapy’s $475,000-per-patient sticker price has drawn fire from advocate groups calling for cheaper drugs, but analysts said the Swiss drug maker could initially struggle to break even.

In a first for gene therapy in the United States, regulators approved Kymriah on Wednesday for patients up to 25 years of age who have relapsed or not been helped by previous treatment for B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.

While patient groups hailed the potent immunotherapy as a potential cancer game-changer, the Swiss drugmaker was also criticised for setting a price that places Kymriah among the most-expensive drugs ever. It trails only a couple of gene therapies for ulta-rare diseases.

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