Biogen Idec’s Tecfidera receives NICE recommendation

Biogen Idec's new multiple sclerosis (MS) therapy Tecfidera has been approved for NHS use by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

In final guidance from the UK regulator, the dimethyl fumarate therapy has been recommended as a treatment option for adults with relapsing-remitting MS, a debilitating condition that can have a substantial impact on quality of life.

The drug has shown efficacy in clinical trials and represents a convenient orally-administered alternative to current injection-based therapies. Biogen Idec has agreed to supply the drug at a discount as part of a patient access scheme.

Following this ruling, the NHS now has a legal obligation to begin funding this treatment for eligible patients within the next three months.

Professor Carole Longson, NICE Health Technology Evaluation Centre director, said: "Evidence has shown that this drug is more effective in reducing relapse rates and just as effective in delaying disability progression compared with current similar treatments."

Tecfidera was approved by the European Commission in February 2014 and has been available in the US since last year, becoming the country's number one prescribed oral therapy for relapsing forms of MS after six months.