Women with advanced breast cancer from today can now get a life-extending drug on the NHS

Women with advanced breast cancer from today can now get a life-extending drug on the NHS From today, women with advanced breast cancer have access to a life-prolonging drug, which helped one mum get to see her daughter attend her prom and get her GCSE results Women suffering from advanced breast cancer will from today be able to get a life-prolonging drug on the NHS. Campaigners Breast Cancer Now described the decision as “monumental” after fighting for two years for the life-extending drug to be made available on the NHS. Around 1,000 people with HER2-low advanced breast cancer can from today now be offered Enhertu after NICE recommended it for routine NHS use. NHS England will now immediately make the treatment available for eligible patients. The Mirror has extensively covered the emotional campaign by Breast Cancer Now, who have been fighting relentlessly for terminally ill patients to get access to Enhertu. We told of mum Jess Duggan, 44, who was given six weeks to live but was unable to get the drug on the NHS. She was so desperate for that extra time with her children she crowdfunded and got to see her daughter's prom and be there for her children's birthdays. Her plea prompted readers to help raise more than £50,000 to pay for the drug. Now Jess, from Lewes, who was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer in 2023, says she can now start concentrating on “making memories” instead of fundraising. She told The Mirror: "I can't put into words what it means to see Enhertu approved for use on the NHS today for myself and for the thousands of women like me who will now get to benefit from this phenomenal drug. "Thanks to Enhertu, I've been able to be present for milestones I thought I was going to miss. I've seen my daughter get her GCSE results, be around to see my son turn 13 and importantly, I get to be here for the everyday moments I thought I wouldn't be, and that is priceless. "I'm thrilled NICE, NHS England and the drug companies have managed to make this available finally, so I can stop worrying about crowdfunding any more treatment and I can fully focus on making memories with the people I love. "For us women living with incurable metastatic breast cancer this is a milestone that gives us precious more time and for that I'm so grateful." Previously, NICE’s independent committee said they had been unable to recommend it at the price proposed by the companies. But NICE said “a commercial solution has now been agreed” on the use of Enhertu for this group. Clinical trial evidence showed that Enhertu helps people with HER2-low advanced breast cancer live longer, and can also increase the time before their cancer gets worse compared with standard chemotherapy. Helen Knight, director of medicines evaluation at NICE, said: "I'm pleased that a commercial solution, alongside recent changes to NICE's cost-effectiveness thresholds and the use of new methods for assessing quality-of-life, has meant this treatment can now be provided on the NHS. “However, we know this decision comes too late for many families, and our thoughts are with them today. Our role is important in ensuring NHS spending on new medicines reflects the benefits they deliver while protecting valuable health resources for other essential patient services.” Dr Anne Rigg, consultant medical oncologist and NHS England’s national specialty adviser for chemotherapy, said: “This is hugely positive news for women with secondary breast cancer who will now be offered this life-extending treatment on the NHS, giving them the opportunity for more time with their loved ones. “We know how important this will be for women and families affected, and we have shared their determination to find a way to make Enhertu available to everyone who could benefit, so we’re very pleased that a commercial solution has now been agreed with the drug companies which means women can access it from today.” Claire Rowney chief executive of Breast Cancer Now said: “Today, we can finally say we did it. After more than two years of relentless campaigning, Enhertu has been recommended by NICE for use on the NHS in England for people with HER2-low metastatic breast cancer. “This is a momentous day for thousands of people who will now have access to a drug that will give them the opportunity to gain precious extra time with loved ones. More ordinary days that become extraordinary because they were there. “This milestone victory belongs to every person who refused to accept that access to a life-extending treatment was out of reach. For people in England, the wait for Enhertu is finally over. We must now also see Wales and Northern Ireland make Enhertu available for use on the NHS for those who need more time to live. “This victory belongs to the women with metastatic breast cancer who continued campaigning when they could have been spending their precious time with their loved ones. It belongs to everyone who signed our petitions, contacted their MPs, shared our campaign and kept the pressure on, including METUPUK and Make 2nds Count who campaigned alongside us. “Together, we never gave up. And today, persistence paid off. But we can’t celebrate this momentous decision without remembering the devastating cost of this delay. “Since 2024 when it was first rejected for use, thousands of people have missed out on access to Enhertu and tragically many have died. We remember with deep gratitude the women who stood alongside us and fought for this very moment. Women who were mums, daughters, sisters like Hannah, Jeannie and Tracy. We owe it to them to make sure this never happens again. “We are calling on the government, NICE, NHS England and the pharmaceutical industry to work together to fix this broken system, so that people with incurable metastatic breast cancer are not forced to spend precious months and years campaigning for treatments that could give them more time. “We are determined to keep championing for every person with metastatic breast cancer to get the best possible treatment, as quickly as possible, wherever they live.”