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Prostate cancer sufferers are denied 'wonder pill' that's widely available to Scots
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Gilda
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Gilda
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Prostate cancer sufferers in England and Wales are being denied a ‘wonder pill’ that is widely available in Scotland.
Abiraterone produced such stunning results in trials that it was hailed as the biggest breakthrough in the field for 60 years.
It shrinks advanced tumours that have spread throughout the body. The NHS in England and Wales limits its use to men who have already had chemotherapy. But Scotland has just made it available pre-chemo – when it might be even more effective.
In a second example of ‘health apartheid’, the Scottish drugs rationing body has also given the green light to prostate cancer treatment using radium 223.
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence is expected to approve it for NHS use in England and Wales in January. But only for post-chemotherapy use.
Hugh Gunn, from the cancer charity Tackle, said hundreds of men could lose out. He said: ‘It is very important these drugs are made available.
‘These drugs work for longer and are far more effective if they are given before chemotherapy.’
Professor Paul Workman, of the Institute for Cancer Research in London, said patients south of the border were being ‘denied’ abiraterone, adding: ‘What’s excellent news for Scotland will only reinforce the frustration for patients in England and Wales.’
Abiraterone, which was discovered by scientists at the Institute for Cancer Research at London’s Royal Marsden Hospital, costs around £36,000 a year.
Men who take it in pill form four times a day live an average of four months longer.
Owen Sharp, of the Prostate Cancer Charity, said: ‘Four months may not appear to be very long, but those months could mean a man lives to see the birth of a grandchild or even just give him the chance to do more of the things we all take for granted – whilst still enjoying a good quality of life with much less pain and few side-effects.’
Original Article: DailyMail
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