Patients with breast cancer and advanced prostate cancer could benefit from a new drug being rolled out in England following a commercial deal by the NHS.
The NHS has today struck a deal with AstraZeneca thus allowing NICE to make a recommendation of the drug, olaparib for treatment of BRCA-mutated breast and prostate cancers.
Olaparib will be a treatment option for adults with HER2-negative,high-risk early breast cancer, wjo have inherited faults in their BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes.
As well as, adults with previously treatment hormone-relapsed metastatic prostate cancer who have the same BRCA mutations.
Around 550 men and 300 women will be eligible for this drug each year in England.
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Chief executive at Breast Cancer Now, Baroness Delyth Morgan said that it was fantastic news the drug has been approved for use on the NHS.
‘Around 5-10% of women with breast cancer carry an inherited altered gene of which the BRCA 1 and 2 genes are the most common. Sadly, some people with high-risk, HER2 negative primary breast cancer with an altered BRCA gene – often known as the ’Jolie gene’ – may see their cancer return following treatment.
‘Crucially, olaparib can reduce the risk of people’s cancer returning or progressing to incurable secondary breast cancer and stop people dying from this devastating disease.’
Clinical trials in BRCA-mutant, HER2-negative early breast cancer, showed that giving olaparib after chemotherapy reduced the risk of the disease returning within four years by nearly a third.
Other trials in advanced prostate cancer that had spread to another part of the body, taking olaparib as a daily tablet extended patients’ lives from 12 to 18 months.
Chiara De Biase, director of support and influencing at Prostate Cancer UK said: ‘This is the first targeted treatment of its kind to be approved for the disease and it finally moves us away from the old ‘one size fits all’ approach to prostate cancer treatment. We’re proud of the role we played in developing this exciting drug, which stands to extend the lives of hundreds of men each year.’
With today’s deal, the NHS is now able to offer the treatment to more than 1,500 people each year in England across six different cancer indications covering different types of breast, prostate, ovarian, fallopian tube and peritoneal cancers.
Helen Knight, director of medicine evaluation at NICE was delighted that the NHS and AstraZeneca were able to come to an agreement.
She said: ‘Olaparib represents an important development in the treatment of early breast and advanced prostate cancer and today’s announcement addresses a significant need by giving people with these types of cancer access to an effective, targeted treatment.’