Two new innovative treatments made routinely available on NHS

NHS England has struck new deals to make innovative treatments for Multiple Sclerosis and breast cancer routinely available on the NHS.

Hundreds of patients with Multiple Sclerosis are set to benefit from a new treatment option, Mavenclad, following a deal with drug company Merck.

NHS England and Roche have also reached a commercial agreement on the use of Pertuzumab, which unlocks the final stage of NICE’s appraisal and opens the way for continued access to this important treatment for breast cancer.

NHS England has been working with these companies to help ensure new, effective, but expensive medicines reach patients.

Previous arrangements would be down to industry proposing a price where NICE say yes or no to the drug being made available. NHS England now has more direct involvement with industry, working closely with NICE, to help to find deals that work for patients and taxpayers.

NHS England has recently announced deals to enable patients to access two innovative treatments - Kadcyla for breast cancer and asfotase alfa for a rare bone disease. These deals were reached by NHS England and working closely with the pharmaceutical companies - Roche and Alexion - which then allowed NICE to make a decision based on improved terms.

Delyth Morgan, chief executive, Breast Cancer Now, said: “This is exceptionally good news for patients and their doctors, and we very much hope that NICE will now be able to approve Perjeta as soon as possible. The impact that this treatment has had, and will hopefully now continue to have on the NHS, for thousands of women living with incurable metastatic breast cancer and their loved ones cannot be underestimated.

“Perjeta is an indispensable and life-changing drug, offering women with incurable breast cancer nearly 16 extra months to live compared to other treatments. We’re thrilled that, once more, tough negotiation and flexibility by NHS England and NICE, and the willingness of Roche to put patients first and compromise on price, is set to ensure that thousands of women can be given precious extra time to live.

“This step shows quite clearly that robust deal-making is possible and can achieve real value for money for the NHS and the taxpayer. With uncertainty continuing to surround the consideration of combination treatments for NHS use, we hope that Perjeta will prove a precedent rather than an exception.”

Genevieve Edwards, director of external affairs, MS Society, said: “This is great news for people with relapsing MS. Just 20 years ago we didn’t have any treatment options – now there are thirteen available on our NHS. The decision to grant immediate access is another important step forward and proves how much progress continues to be made. Cladribine offers people with more active MS a new oral therapy which can be taken in two courses, minimising disruption to their daily lives. There are 100,000 people in the UK with MS and we want to make sure that we continue on this trajectory, so everyone can access a treatment that works for them.”