The most effective drug for Alzheimer’s has been blocked for use on the NHS, banned – despite regulators declaring it safe – because of cost.
The rationing body for the health service ruled yesterday that it is too expensive for NHS patients, a decision that will disappoint charities and campaigners who have called for better access to newly emerging drugs on the national health service.
Donanemab has been described as game-changing, after research showed it slowed the progression of Alzheimer’s by 35%. Scientists said it could mean patients were able to live at home with a better quality of life for an extra two years.
The Telegraph reports that the decision on donanemab – the second drug found to slow the progress of Alzheimer’s disease – is set to mirror one taken in August when lecanemab, the first breakthrough treatment for the condition, was licensed.
The draft guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) will mean patients will only be able to obtain either drug from private clinics, unless they are part of a clinical trial. Health insurance policies are unlikely to cover costs.
Charities and pharmaceutical companies have criticised Nice, the rationing body for the NHS, for disregarding the costs borne by families and society in making their assessments.
Almost 1m people in the UK have dementia, including one in six people over 80. The figure is expected to reach 1.4m by 2040, as Britain ages.
The vast majority of care is either provided by loved ones or paid for privately, but Nice excludes these “non-medical” costs of care in its decision-making.
Estimates suggest that the UK spends around £42bn a year on dementia, with most of the costs borne by families and social care bodies. Forecasts have said that this figure could reach £90bn by 2040.
The decision has been hit by delays, with the regulator initially planning to make a call in July – the same time that it was approved for use in the US.
Professor Sir John Hardy, the chairman of molecular biology of neurological disease at the UCL Institute of Neurology and one of the world’s leading researchers in the field, said he expected Nice to once again “come down on the wrong side of the argument” about drugs which were “game-changing”.
The scientist was the first to identify the role of amyloid in Alzheimer’s, which has now led to drugs that work by clearing the protein.
“These drugs can give people an extra two years at home, rather than in a nursing home. That is time enjoying their lives, having holidays – this is important stuff.”
The scientist, who has consulted for both Eisai, which manufactures lecanemab, and Lilly, which makes donanemab, said: “These are finely balanced arguments, but I do think they’ve come down on the wrong side of it.
“I also think the benefit of approval would be that it would kick NHS dementia care into shape – which really needs to happen. These drugs will come down the line at some point, and I don’t think the NHS is ready for them.”
The Telegraph article – Alzheimer’s wonder drug faces NHS block over cost (Restricted access)
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