3 Dec 2015

New funding regime needed for revolutionary cancer drugs

From Nine To Noon, 9:08 am on 3 December 2015

The country's top cancer research organisation says a new drug funding regime is needed to pay for a new generation of drugs which are revolutionising cancer therapy. Pharmac's clinical advisory committee has given one of those new drugs, Pembro-lizumab - also known as Keytruda - a low funding priority, saying it cannot justify the $30 million yearly cost without more evidence of its benefits. Keytruda is used to treat advanced melanoma - New Zealand's second most common cancer, which kills 350 people a year.