Prostate cancer drugs charities have expressed anger and frustration at the NHS’s refusal to provide life-saving prostate cancer drug abiraterone in England. The drug has been available for two years in Scotland and Wales for high-risk patients whose cancer has not yet spread. But thousands of patients in England and Northern Ireland are being denied access to it. In a letter to Prostate Cancer UK, Health Minister Karin Smith said the decision by NHS England was made “based on overall financial capacity” after a lengthy review and “should not be overturned”. Concerned groups have expressed anger at the government’s indifference. However, the government said it had sought urgent advice on the matter.
The charities said it was a “terrible and urgent situation” in England. “Men are being denied access to this treatment due to complex legal and regulatory frameworks,” they said.
A spokesman for the Department of Health and Social Care said: “We understand the frustration and anger of those who are not receiving this life-saving medicine. Ministers have sought urgent advice on this.”
Abiraterone does not cure cancer, but it helps to stop it spreading to other parts of the body. In England and Northern Ireland, it is only approved for men with very advanced prostate cancer. In Wales and Scotland, it is also available to men whose cancer has not yet spread.
Studies have shown that survival rates increase after six years in men whose cancer is at an early stage and the risk of the cancer spreading is halved. A study called Stampede has shown that the medicine could save many lives.
According to NHS England, around 8,400 men are diagnosed with high-risk prostate cancer every year, which has not yet spread. Stampede estimates that 672 of them could die prematurely if they do not receive abiraterone. Giles Turner, a retired banker, spends £250 a month on the medicine. “I’m angry for those who can’t buy,” he said.
