I just created the petition "Stop Cancer Drug Fund Cuts in England" and wanted to ask if you could add your name too.
This campaign means a lot to me and the more support we can get behind it, the better chance we have of succeeding. You can read more and sign the petition here:
P.S. Can you also take a moment to share the petition with others? It's really easy – all you need to do is forward this email or share this link on Facebook or Twitter:
I agree, but I live in Wales, and we aren't given any info about what is happening here - the BBC assumes 'NHS' means the whole UK, but unfortunately it doesn't. They should drop the 'National' bit.
Wales does not have a Cancer Drugs Fund and access to treatments not approved or in the process of NICE approval are accessed via the individual patient funding request wales.nhs.uk/sitesplus/863/... which is a bit of a post code lottery and subject to criteria making it very difficult for many . The All Wales Medicines Strategy Group, (AWMSG) part of the All Wales Therapies and |Toxicoligy Centre (AWTTC) are presently reviewing the appraisal process for orphan and ultra orphan diseases and is in engaging patients and patient groups in the consultation . Will report as this develops
That being said it has been suggested in earlier reports that the England Cancer Drugs Fund may influence the NICE appraisal process itself and it's recommendations may have some impact on eventual England and Wales NHS guidance issued by NICE. NICE approves treatments for NHS England and NHS Wales.
David's petition accepts signatures with UK postcodes
"We urge the NCDF to review its decision in order to allow clinicians to be able to choose the right treatment at the right time for their patients. The current NICE approved drugs that are available in routine NHS care are totally inadequate.
We also believe that the NCDF decision making process needs to be amended and has to include specialists for each disease area.
Why is this important?
On Friday 4th of September 2015 the National Cancer Drug Fund announced to withdraw life-saving drugs for patients suffering from blood cancer by the 1st of November. Patients with myeloma, chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, Hodgkin's Lymphoma and chronic myeloid leukaemia are particularly affected. Many of these drugs don't just prolong life by a few months. They actually have a very significant impact on overall life expectancy and also on quality of life and are part of routine care in many European countries and the United States. Without access to these drugs, we cannot deliver on personalised medicine, a concept that is now widely accepted in the NHS."
This is an appalling and disgraceful decision. Yet they continue to put millions upon millions of pounds into Big Pharma's coffers for statins, which no randomised, clinical trial has yet been able to demonstrate offers any improvement in life expectancy whatsoever.
Of course you can cancer knows no borders and the more money that is spent of cancer drugs anywhere in the world the better they will be and become in time. Restricting such spending impacts on individuals, sufferers and has eider implications for the provision of all drug therapies.
thanks for doing this petition....ive signed and shared and will probably be affected by these disgraceful cuts.....depressed and angry but not giving up.....
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