Drug dilemma (From Stroud News and Journal)

Drug dilemma

BREAST cancer sufferers in the Five Valleys could soon be entitled to wonder-drug Herceptin - but health chiefs say the cash-strapped NHS faces cuts elsewhere to pay for it.

At present, only women with advanced cases of breast cancer are eligible for the drug.

It is anticipated that the drug will be officially licensed to treat early forms of the disease in July with prescription guidelines from the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (Nice) following shortly after.

However, Richard James, chief executive of the Cotswold and Vale Primary Care Trust - which is expected to merge with the two other Gloucestershire PCTs to share debts of around £24 million - is warning that tough choices lie ahead.

"Given Gloucestershire health community's financial difficulties, the additional cost pressure posed by new cancer drugs will present a significant challenge and may result in service restrictions elsewhere," he said.

A landmark Court of Appeal ruling last Wednesday saw early breast cancer sufferer Anne-Marie Rogers, from Swindon, claim the right to Herceptin from her PCT.

The key victory is expected to pave the way for more women to receive the drug.

A spokesman for the Gloucestershire NHS Trust said: "Once new NICE guidance is received, the NHS locally will consider how best to prioritise implementation across Gloucestershire.

"Until this time, a clinician may ask a PCT to consider approving Herceptin for a patient with early stage breast cancer."

Mother-of-one Tina Rees, 47, from Randwick, recently beat breast cancer and backed proposals to make Herceptin more widely available.

"It's very hard as the consultants would love to give it to everybody," she said.

"Although the drug wasn't right for me if I needed it I would definitely fight tooth and nail if it was the only thing that could save my life."