Claire Rowney, chief executive of Breast Cancer Now, says:
“We’re beyond devastated that despite the Secretary of State’s intervention, and relentless campaigning by women who desperately need access to Enhertu, patient advocacy group METUPUK, and the support of hundreds of thousands of people who backed our #EnhertuEmergency petition, NICE, NHS England, Daiichi Sankyo and AstraZeneca have failed to make progress towards Enhertu being available for thousands of people with HER2-low secondary breast cancer.
“We welcomed the Secretary of State's clear support for finding a solution to make Enhertu available on the NHS in England and so, given today’s decision, are requesting his immediate clarification on how this could be achieved.
“Having endured over a year of stress, worry and fear, caught in the middle of a stand-off about cost and the system, it’s utterly heartbreaking that women in England, Wales and Northern Ireland who desperately need Enhertu, will now be denied the hope of more time to live their lives – that's precious time to enjoy another Christmas with families and children, and to create special moments that matter most to them. This is an avoidable tragedy.
“With Enhertu available to women in Scotland, and 18 other European countries, a deep injustice is at play here and we’re devastated that the opportunity to put this right has been missed. No-one should ever be in a position of considering moving to another country as the only way to access a life-extending treatment.
“The heartbreaking but inescapable reality is, these women don’t have time to wait, and lives will be cut short.”
ENDS