Technology appraisals

NHS app to allow patients to order repeat prescriptions

Pilot testing of a new NHS smartphone app will begin in October 2018, before being rolled out across England in December 2018.…

Two cancer drugs approved by NICE after companies cut prices

Two drugs for the treatment of some patients with leukaemia or lung cancer are to be routinely available on the NHS following a recommendation from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).  The move follows a NICE reappraisal of the products — which have pr…

NICE rejects £104,000 lumacaftor/ivacaftor therapy for cystic fibrosis

The high cost of combination treatment lumacaftor/ivacaftor (Orkambi) means it has not been recommended for use in the NHS in England and Wales for cystic fibrosis (CF), draft guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) says…

Combination immunotherapy for advanced melanoma gets early approval from NICE

The immunotherapy combination nivolumab/ipilimumab has been recommended for patients with advanced malignant melanoma, according to draft guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).  The approval means that patients in England and Wales will be the first in…

‘One-size-fits-all’ approach will not work for drug evaluation and funding

Evaluation and funding of the most promising and innovative medicines will require a separate approach to other drugs in the future, according to the chair of the government-commissioned accelerated access review.…

Proposal to involve NICE in approval process for Cancer Drugs Fund

The evaluation of drugs currently funded under the Cancer Drugs Fund (CDF) could be passed over to National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) under proposals drawn up by NHS England.…

Untapped cost-efficiencies are a barrier to drugs access ‘in Europe and beyond’, says WHO

A lack of collaboration and pharmacoeconomic analysis is hampering processes aimed at ensuring sustainable access to new drugs in Europe, says the World Health Organization.…

Appraisal processes prevent patients from accessing new anti-cancers, report claims

A report says countries that use a QALY formula to assess cost-effectiveness have less access to new cancer drugs compared with countries that use an alternative system.…