NICE u-turns on Entyvio for Crohn’s disease
pharmafile | July 10, 2015 | News story | Medical Communications, Sales and Marketing | Crohn's, Crohn’s disease, Entyvio, Millenium, NICE, Takeda, funding
NICE has performed a u-turn and recommended drug treatment Entyvio for Crohn’s disease for routine NHS funding.
In final draft guidance NICE has recommended that, Entyvio (vedolizumab) can be considered as an option to treat people with moderate to severely active Crohn’s disease. This is only in cases where their disease has not responded well to previous treatments or their treatment has stopped working.
NICE had initially rejected Entyvio in a preliminary appraisal, after the appraisal committee initially reviewed Takeda’s submission and decided that “the evidence for the drug is too uncertain” and that “the drug was not likely to represent good value for the NHS”.
However NICE has gone back on its decision after Takeda’s Millennium Pharmaceuticals agreed a patient access scheme with the Department of Health. Entyvio is a biologic therapy licensed for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Takeda’s list price for the drug is £2,050 per 300mg vial for ongoing treatment.
Professor Carole Longson, director of the NICE health technology evaluation centre says: “After considering further information, NICE is happy to be able to recommend vedolizumab as a treatment option for those with Crohn’s disease.
“We hope the recommendation will benefit tens of thousands of people who live with this debilitating condition.”
The draft guidance from NICE states that patients receiving Entyvio for Crohn’s disease should be reassessed after a period of 12 months, and that treatment should only continue if it is still justified as both clinically and cost effective. Final guidance is expected to be published by NICE later this year.
Crohn’s disease is a long-term condition that causes inflammation of the wall of the digestive system. There are around 115,000 people living with the condition in the UK. Crohn’s disease can affect people of all ages, including children.
Yasmita Kumar
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