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Kidney cancer healthcare treatment turned down by Nice
November 26, 2010
Patients on the NHS will not be able to make use of kidney cancer drug Afinitor, it has been decided.
A drug that helps with the healthcare treatment of advanced kidney cancer will not be made available on the NHS following a decision from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice).
The body has ruled the costs of Afinitor outweigh the potential benefits it could provide to patients, reports the Press Association.
Afinitor costs around £99 per day to administer to a patient, extending life by an average period of three months.
Mike Hobday, head of policy at Macmillan Cancer Support, described the decision as a "frustrating" one.
"Everyone should get the clinically effective drugs their doctor recommends, regardless of what type of cancer they have," he said.
"We want NHS support to be fair and equal."
Earlier this month, Professor Karol Sikora, medical director of independent organisation CancerPartnersUK, said there are considerable regional variations in the healthcare treatment for cancer offered by NHS organisations, especially in regard to access to radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
Published by James Whiting
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