NICE recommends thalidomide ahead of Velcade
pharmafile | July 27, 2011 | News story | Sales and Marketing | NICE, Thalidomide, Velcade
NICE has recommended Celgene’s thalidomide ahead of J&J’s Velcade for multiple myeloma.
Celgene’s drug is recommended in combination with an alkylating agent and a corticosteroid, in multiple myeloma patients for whom high-dose chemotherapy with stem cell transplantation is considered inappropriate.
The Institute also recommended Johnson & Johnson’s Velcade (bortezomib) under the same circumstances, but only if the patient is unable to tolerate, or has contraindications to, thalidomide.
Dr Carole Longson, health technology evaluation centre director at NICE, said: “We are delighted to be able to recommend these two new treatment options for people with this condition.
“Thalidomide and [Velcade] regimens have been shown to be more effective at delaying disease progression and improving patients’ life expectancy than the current treatment of an alkylating agent and corticosteroid alone.”
Dr Longson said that NICE heard from clinical specialists who said that, although the choice of treatment would differ for each individual, thalidomide would be considered suitable for most patients.
“The two regimens were similar in terms of clinical effectiveness, but thalidomide regimens were more cost effective,” she concluded.
The average cost of Velcade per treatment cycle is £3,000, with the cost for a 3.5-mg vial coming in at £762.38.
The average cost of thalidomide is much lower at £2,100, with the cost for a 28-capsule pack of 50-mg thalidomide capsules coming in at £298.48, although these costs may vary in because of negotiated discounts.
J&J’s subsidiary Janssen had previously contested NICE’s decision, hoping to gain the more lucrative recommendation as a first-line treatment.
The Institute noted that an appeal panel, which met in November, upheld one of seven appeal points from the firm, stating that “insufficient efforts had been made by NICE to obtain permission to release an executable economic model to consultees”.
The appraisal committee then met again to discuss comments received on the reliability of the model and to reconsider the draft recommendations – following the discussion, a second final appraisal determination was published, and no further appeals were received.
Ben Adams
Related Content
Combination treatments: Takeda’s Implementation Framework and the broader landscape
Pharmafile talks to Emma Roffe, Oncology Country Head (UK & Ireland) about the combination treatment …
NICE recommends Pfizer’s new once-weekly treatment for haemophilia B on NHS
Walton Oaks, 21st May 2025 – Pfizer Ltd announced today that the National Institute for Health and Care …
Dual immunotherapy for bowel cancer now available under NHS
Dual immunotherapy, a combination of Opdivo (nivolumab) and Yervoy (ipilimumab), has been granted extension in …
