SMC backs Celgene's Vidaza for rare blood and bone marrow cancers in Scotland

The Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC), the equivalent of the UK’s drug watchdog the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) which backed the drug earlier this year (The Pharma Letter February 17), has now granted patients in Scotland access to USA-based Celgene’s (Nasdaq: CELG) Vidaza (azacitidine) on the National Health Service in that country, having taken into account the benefits of a new patient access scheme.

This is the first time all patients in Scotland with advanced myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) can be prescribed azacitidine, which can potentially prolong the life of terminally ill patients by around nine months longer than standard treatment. The SMC decision is a reversal of a previous negative guidance.

Paul Micallef-Eynaud, consultant hematologist, NHS Ayrshire and Arran, Scotland, quoted by Celgene, said: “By providing patients with access to this drug, we hope to improve the rate of survival and quality of life for many MDS sufferers. Individuals with advanced MDS can suffer from bleeding, infection and severe tiredness and there is a high risk of transformation to acute leukemia at which stage treatment options are exceedingly limited and ineffective at prolonging life. We can now provide patients with a much needed treatment option.”