NHS England agrees funding for Gilead’s hepatitis C drug Sovaldi

NHS England has approved an £18.7 million ($31.3 million) investment in a new drug for the treatment of hepatitis C, US biotech firm Gilead Sciences’ (Nasdaq: GILD) Sovaldi (sofosbuvir).

Around 500 patients with acute liver failure, and/or awaiting liver transplantation, are expected to benefit from the decision to fund sofosbuvir, commented NHS England which, since April 2013, has taken on many of the functions of the former primary care trusts (PCTs) with regard to the commissioning of primary care health services, as well as some nationally-based functions previously undertaken by the Department of Health. Current estimates indicate that around 30% of people infected with chronic hepatitis C will develop cirrhosis of the liver which, in some cases, may prove fatal without a liver transplant.

Exceptional efficacy tempered by high cost criticism