Dear All,
Sadly the news from NICE towers is not good. They have declined Avastin as a treatment for 1st line ovarian cancer treatment. The reasons for this are complex, and we wanted to share them with you.
Avastin has been proven to be an effective treatment for ovarian cancer, both in the first line, and in relapsed disease.When considering a treatment one looks to research findings, both for progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival. (OS)
Avastin has demonstrated in clinical studies benefit for these indications, however studies alone do not give us the whole picture. NICE has to consider whether or not a treatment is cost effective, and on this measure Avastin has failed the NICE criteria.
Ovacome made a robust defence, arguing that Avastin offered a step change in treatment paradigms, and the any advance should be available, however the sums did not add up.
The most important thing right now is that women on Avastin will continue to receive it, and that Avastin will remain to be available via the cancer drugs fund (CDF). We are hopeful that a review toward the end of the year will ultimately acknowledge that Avastin at the UK preferred dose is a cost effective intervention.
We will keep you updated as news occurs.
L x