Cancer: Drugs

(asked on 3rd June 2019) - View Source

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Cancer Drugs Fund in meeting the needs of people with rarer and less common cancers.


Answered by
Seema Kennedy Portrait
Seema Kennedy
This question was answered on 11th June 2019

Following the reforms to the Cancer Drugs Fund (CDF) in July 2016 all new cancer drugs and significant new licensed indications for existing drugs are referred to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). This included the referral of all licensed cancer drug indications for rare cancers that had not previously been assessed by NICE.

This has led to an increase in the number, and proportion, of NICE appraisals of treatments for rare cancers. Since July 2016 21% or 24 out of 114 cancer drugs appraised by NICE have been for rarer cancers, compared to 9% or 18 out of 200, before the CDF reforms. Of these 24 drugs for rare cancers, 22 have been recommended for routine commissioning and two for use within the CDF. This shows that changes to the appraisal and funding of cancer drugs has led to an increase in the number of treatments for rare cancers both assessed by NICE and funded by NHS England in routine commissioning and via the CDF.

Reticulating Splines