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Home Industry News Merck Sharp and Dohme’s Keytruda included in Cancer Drugs Fund

Merck Sharp and Dohme’s Keytruda included in Cancer Drugs Fund

5th July 2017

Merck Sharp and Dohme's Keytruda has been accepted for inclusion in England's Cancer Drugs Fund as a first-line lung cancer therapy.

The treatment will be made available under special arrangements with NHS England, with lung cancer patients to be offered Keytruda at a discounted price while further clinical data is collected to support a full regulatory approval.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has approved the treatment under the new appraisal process for cancer drugs introduced in April 2016. It allows therapies to be made available that have shown strong efficacy early studies, but where more data is needed on their long-term benefits.

Keytruda is used to treat advanced lung cancer in people who have specific protein and genetic markers and has already been recommended by NICE as a second-line option, but this ruling will allow around 1,400 new patients with untreated lung cancer to benefit.

Professor Carole Longson, director of the NICE centre for health technology evaluation, said: "With companies working closely with us and NHS England, we will continue to deliver on our promise to give people fast access to the most effective cancer drugs."

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