NICE Final decision to NOT RECOMMEND azacitidine for MDS patients

4th March 2010 – NICE has just issued their FINAL decision on the cost-effectiveness HTA for azacitidine (Vidaza). They DO NOT recommend the use of the drug for NHS patients.

The Final Appraisal Determination issued by NICE states that azacitidine is not recommended as a treatment option for people with intermediate-2 or high risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), nor is it recommended for patients with forms of chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia or acute myeloid leukaemia. While NICE recognised that azacitidine was clinically effective and that it should be seen as a life-extending end-of-life treatment, it decided that it should not be provided through the NHS on cost-effectiveness grounds.

An appeal is currently being considered. We may require your urgent assistance should an appeal process be possible.

Please check our website regularly in the week of the 8th March.

Please also check our campaigns page for more details on our work to gain access to azacitidine for NHS patients

Documents

MDS Patient Support Final Press Relase  (Adobe PDF)
MDS Patient Support Press coverage  (Adobe PDF)
MDS Patient Support Professor Rodney Taylor, an MDS Patient, was interviewed on BBC Radio’s Today Programme (4 March 2010) where he spoke about the need for the NICE HTA process to be more flexible in the evaluation of medicines for rarer cancers that affect only small patient groups. Listen to the clip.

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