Woman wins court battle for Avastin treatment

pharmafile | July 19, 2007 | News story | Sales and Marketing |ย ย NICE, avastinย 

A woman with bowel cancer has won her High Court battle for access to the drug Avastin, overturning a decision by her local primary care trust.

57-year-old Victoria Otley, who has bowel cancer that has spread to her liver, had been refused funding for Avastin by Barking and Dagenham PCT.

Ms Otley had raised £15,000 to pay for the drug privately, but when her funds ran out, the PCT refused to pay for continuing treatment, which costs £1,200 per cycle.

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The PCT decided that the treatment would not be cost-effective in the case of Ms Otley, but the High Court judge ruled that this decision was flawed and irrational.

The judge, Mr Justice Mitting, said the PCT panel considering the case had concentrated exclusively on Ms Otley's short-term prospects.

He said the PCT had failed to take into account her "slim but important" chances of surviving more than a few months more if she received the treatment.

Ian Beaumont, of Bowel Cancer UK, told the BBC he was "delighted" with the judgment.

"This is the first bowel cancer case to come for judicial review," he said.

"We await with interest what this judgment means and hope common sense will prevail from the trust."

The case is also highly significant because NICE has already ruled that Avastin is not cost-effective enough for use on the NHS. While the court ruling does not alter NICE's ruling, it is likely to open the door to others seeking expensive treatments which have been rejected by NICE.

 

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