Woman wins right to Herceptin trial
pharmafile | December 22, 2005 | News story | |Â Â Â
A woman with breast cancer has been granted the right to take her PCT to court for barring access to Herceptin.
Swindon PCT has refused to pay for Ann Marie Roger to have the breast cancer drug but will now have to defend its policy in court after a judge ruled the case deserved a full hearing.
The case will be heard in the New Year, and the judge has ordered the PCT to supply the drug in the intervening period.
Rogers' solicitor, Yogi Amin said: "We are delighted the court has agreed to a full hearing and that they have agreed that the PCT should fund our client's treatment between now and the hearing.
"A spokeswoman for the PCT said: The PCT is following directions from the Strategic Health Authority and cancer networks not to routinely fund the drug until its safety is confirmed through licensing and NICE.
"The PCT sympathises with Mrs Rogers and her family at this very difficult time and understand her desire to receive the best particular treatment.
"We want to reassure people that the decisions on whether or not to fund or to support the prescribing of Herceptin are not made solely on the basis of cost."
The spokeswoman concluded by saying evidence of the drug's safety and efficacy remained insufficient to allow reliable judgements, but said the PCT could make no further comments before the court case.
The legal ruling is the latest twist in the Herceptin tale, which has seen health secretary Patricia Hewitt intervene on two occasions to persuade PCTs to provide Herceptin to individual patients.
Rogers has already borrowed 5,000 for three treatments of the drug, but says the PCT should fund a full course of 17 treatments, which costs up to 40,000.
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