July 8 (Reuters) – Drugmakers AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo are nearing an agreement with the UK’s pricing regulator for their breast cancer treatment Enhertu, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing multiple people familiar with the matter.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, or NICE, had previously rejected National Health Service funding for Enhertu, saying the treatment was not cost-effective.
“Discussions are ongoing with NHS England and NICE to identify a solution to support access to Enhertu for HER2-low metastatic breast cancer patients in England, Wales and Northern Ireland,” an AstraZeneca spokesperson told Reuters, without giving details on where talks stand.
Britain’s biggest listed company in April had pledged £300 million ($400 million) in investments as a show of its commitment to its home country. It also followed a bilateral deal aimed at gradually aligning UK drug prices to what Americans pay.
AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot said in April that changes to Britain’s cost-effectiveness methodology gave hope that Enhertu could gain reimbursement at a price acceptable to the drugmaker, though below U.S. price levels.
“NICE stands ready to consider reviewing the guidance if new evidence, including a new commercial offer, were to be put forward by the company,” NICE said in an emailed statement to Reuters.
Enhertu, developed by AstraZeneca and its Japanese partner, is approved in 95 countries for certain breast, gastric and lung cancers. It works by delivering chemotherapy directly to tumours identified by the HER-2 marker, while sparing healthy cells.
Daiichi and NHS did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
($1 = £0.7498)
(Reporting by Raechel Thankam Job and Anushka Chourasia in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur, Leroy Leo)
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