Sanofi has reached an eleventh hour reprieve with NHS England that will see its advanced prostate cancer drug Jevtana (cabazitaxel) once more become available on the NHS.
The drug was de-listed from the Cancer Drugs Fund (CDF) by NHS England on 12 March this year along with 16 other medicines. A number of firms, including Lilly, Roche and Bayer appealed against the decision to cull their drugs, but only Bayer won a reprieve.
Sanofi can now be added to that list as it has come to an agreement with NHS England that will enable Jevtana to be paid for under the CDF to patients in England.
Tarja Stenvall, general manager for Sanofi in the UK and Ireland, said: “We are very pleased that we have come to an agreement with NHS England to find a solution to enable access to cabazitaxel in England. We aim to do our very best by patients and our commitment to reach this agreement with NHS England was no exception.”
NICE has in addition agreed to review the drug again with a new patient access scheme – which lowers the price of the drug – and Sanofi said it expected a result from this re-appraisal next year.
