NICE gives green light to Novartis’ Lucentis for eye condition

The UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has issued final draft guidance recommending Lucentis (ranibizumab) made by Swiss drug major Novartis (NOVN: VX) for people with pathological myopia.

Blockbuster Lucentis, which generated third-quarter sales of $581 million in its current indications, is recommended as an option for treating visual impairment due to choroidal neovascularization secondary to pathological myopia. Short-sightedness, or myopia, is caused by excessively long growth of the eye-ball, or a steeply curved cornea resulting in the image being focused in front of the retina. Pathological myopia is a chronic condition characterized by excessive lengthening of the eye and degenerative changes at the back of the eye. These changes to the eye can cause blood vessels to leak or bleed into the retina in a process known as choroidal neovascularization (CNV). This can result in visual impairment, in particular a loss of central vision.

Until now people with myopic CNV have had to face the possibility of irreversible sight loss because available licensed treatment has been limited to verteporfin photodynamic therapy (vPDT) (Visudyne), which at best can stabilize but not improve vision and is not widely used in the NHS. In evidence presented to the NICE Committee, both patient and clinical representatives outlined the urgent need for effective treatment of myopic CNV and the distress that delays in accessing sight saving treatment can have on this group of patients and their families.