§ Mr. FlookTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will ensure that patients participating in the UK trials for the drug STI-571, who receive proven benefits from the drug during the trial, will continue to have STI-571 made available to them, pending the appraisal of the drug by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence; [5667]
(2) when he will answer the question tabled by the hon. Member for Taunton on 17 July 2001 (ref: 5667) on STI-571. [19484]
§ Ms Blears[pursuant to his reply, 30 November 2001, c.1200W]: I apologise to the hon. Member for the delay in responding to this question. I refer the hon. Member to the reply that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State gave my hon. Friend the Member for Blackpool, North and Fleetwood (Mrs. Humble) on 5 March 2002, Official Report, column 192W.
A letter about the future provision of Glivec (STI-571), agreed by Ministers and signed by both Neil McKay, the Chief Operating Officer, and Professor Mike Richards, the National Cancer Director, was sent on 24 October to all NHS Regional Directors.
Novartis, the manufacturers of Glivec, made a limited free supply available for those patients on the Extended Access Programme (EAP) after which it was for health authorities and trusts to discuss the funding of the treatment. However, as the letter of the 24 October makes clear, there is no question of treatment being withdrawn from patients on funding grounds once EAP supplies ends. Treatment should cease only on clinical grounds.
Those patients involved in trials of Glivec will continue to have their treatments funded by Novartis.