The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) committee reversed its decision following more “responsible pricing.”
Following a recent decision by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) committee, Pfizer’s drug Vizimpro (dacomitinib) for the first-line treatment of locally advanced or metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) will now be available on England’s National Health Service (NHS) list of approved drugs for adults who have tested positive for the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation.
The committee initially decided that the tyrosine kinase inhibitor would not be cost-effective, but changed that decision once Pfizer adjusted its pricing to what Meindert Boysen, director of the Centre for Health Technology Evaluation at NICE, has cited is “responsible.”
Vizimpro has been shown in clinical studies to extend overall survival rates and increase the length of time before the disease worsens, compared to AstraZeneca’s Irissa (gefitinib), which is already recommended by NICE. Visimpro does have more side effects associated with it, so a lower dose may be appropriate.
One drug NICE is not recommending is AZ’s therapy Tagrisso (osimertinib), which is also for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC. This drug was determined to not be cost-effective and therefore not an acceptable use of NHS resources.
