UK’s NICE reverses negative decision on Roche’s Tarceva for NSCLC

Following a consultation period, the UK drug watchdog the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has reversed its decision to restrict access to Tarceva (erlotinib) in second-line non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), a U-turn which will benefit around 2,000 patients per year, said the drug’s marketer, Swiss pharma major Roche (ROG: SIX).

Erlotinib was approved by the NICE for use on the National Health Service in 2008 and has since become the standard of care for relapsed NSCLC, with 60% of clinicians choosing to prescribe the targeted treatment over chemotherapy. Earlier this year, the NICE issued an Appraisal Committee Document (ACD) announcing that it would be limiting access to erlotinib after a review of the existing guidance found that the drug no longer met the NICE criteria for clinical and cost-effectiveness (The Pharma Letter February 4).