NICE BLOCK ON ARTHRITIS DRUG

NICE BLOCK ON ARTHRITIS DRUG

Doctors in clinic and surgery are affected by the The National Health Service cost regulator for England and Wales (National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence NICE) is sticking with its initial decision to bar patients from access to Roche’s rheumatoid arthritis drug RoActemra, which is freely available in Scotland.

According to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, RoActemra (tocilizumab) therapy carries a price tag of around £9,295 a year for a patient weighing approximately 70 kg, which, according to its cost-effectiveness model, is too expensive for use on the NHS.

The decision to reject the drug was made despite the fact that, in clinical trials, compared to disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) alone RoActemra was able to significantly reduce the signs and symptoms of the RA, regardless of previous therapy or disease severity, clearly showing its potential to improve quality of life.

And the news comes just a day after the Institute published guidance on the use of biologic therapies to treat the disease, rejecting the use of Orencia (abatacept) after failure of TNF inhibitors and banning the cycling of anti-TNF therapies, thus heavily restricting the treatment options available to patients.

The National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society says the move “drastically limits” patients’ options for treatment and will come as a “bitter blow” to those with advanced stages of the disease.

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Written by Dr Martin Harris, Doctor and Mohel for Jewish Circumcision Clinic in London Bris Mila Brit Milah.
www.circumcisionlondon.co.uk

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Contact Dr Martin Harris