Women in England with incurable breast cancer to get life-extending drug on NHS

In England, women with incurable HER2-low advanced breast cancer will soon gain access to the life-extending drug Enhertu through the NHS, after ministers reached a successful agreement on its cost with the drug's manufacturers, AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo. Approximately 1,000 women annually with this form of breast cancer will now be able to obtain Enhertu from Thursday onwards.

Clinical trials have demonstrated that Enhertu almost doubles the median progression-free survival, extending it from an average of 5.1 months to 9.9 months. Furthermore, median overall survival among those who used Enhertu increased by 6.6 months compared to those not receiving the treatment. Claire Rowney, chief executive of Breast Cancer Now, hailed the achievement as a "momentous day" for thousands of patients who will now have the opportunity to spend more time with their loved ones.

Despite initial rejection of Enhertu by Nice in July 2024 due to its cost, the drug has since been recommended for routine use on the NHS following renewed negotiations between Nice, NHS England, and the drug manufacturers. Nice's decision was made possible by a recent increase in the maximum annual spending allowance for NHS patients on treatments to £35,000.

Dr. Anne Rigg, a consultant medical oncologist and NHS England's national specialty adviser for chemotherapy, emphasized the significance of this development for women with secondary breast cancer.