“The results of this survey are not what I expected. I can only assume that the majority of you agree with NICE because fingolimod is not cost-effective?”
“I personally feel that fingolimod has several attributes that will make it a valuable addition to the DMTs we currently have available to treat RRMS.”
“This survey had the largest number or responses to date. Thank you for your effort!”
CoI: Multiple
CoI: Multiple
Other relevant posts on this blog:
05 Aug 2011
“While clinical trials have shown that fingolimod (also called Gilenya) can reduce the number of relapses in some people who have highly active relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), it is unclear how much the …
08 Jul 2011
What exactly are you planning on doing to change that Prof G? Having seen the Fingolimod corporate advert extolling its excellence I have to ask that if it is so effective why it is only approved for RRMS patients? …
03 Jun 2011
What exactly are you planning on doing to change that Prof G? Having seen the Fingolimod corporate advert extolling its excellence I have to ask that if it is so effective why it is only approved for RRMS patients? …
I voted Yes because I think the pricing is too brazen. I'm not from the UK and the NICE decision has no direct effect. But it has an indirect effect, because if authorities and insurance companies around the world refuse to pay such rates then Novartis will have to reduce the price.I'm sure they can recover their money equally well by having a much lower price and many more patients using their drug. In developing countries the only people who get any treatment are the super-rich and people with super-generous medical or insurance coverage through employers.
I followed this vote closely, and couldn’t understand what type of person would back NICE’s decision?It certainly couldn’t have been people who had experience themselves of living with a dramatic, aggressive form of MS? Or someone that experienced ongoing horrible side effects from NICE’s “allowed list” of DMT’s?(It was a similar story with Beta interferon when I was first diagnosed.)Yes, it is too expensive, pharmaceutical companies are greedy, and it seems to me that they view the NHS as an inexhaustible source of revenue?However, NICE seem to just dismiss treatments on the basis of “not cost effective” even though there is a lot of evidence showing that the drug has a positive effect modifying the progression of MS, rather than negotiate a better price?It is the MS patient that is the loser in this story.