Bob joined Breast Cancer Care in Parliament last week to call for breast cancer patients’ voices to be central in decisions about the availability of new medicines on the NHS in England.
Patients affected by breast cancer were on hand to share their experiences with MPs and set out their expectations for a new system for assessing medicines, known as the ‘value assessment’, to be led by the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE). The new system proposed by Breast Cancer Care intends to ensure that patients can benefit from medicines based more on what matters most to them, and will be consulted on later this year.
Ahead of this, the charity surveyed and interviewed breast cancer patients to find out what they most valued from treatment. The findings are set out in a new report, Delivering value for breast cancer patients, and include:
- What’s important in treatment goals for those with primary breast cancer can be different for those with secondary (advanced) disease. Generally patients place the most value on treatments that save and extend life, but quality of life is also valued highly, particularly by advanced cancer patients
- Quality of life means different things to different patients, from going to the shops to being able to continue working – this means that the new system will need to be robust enough to respond to individual needs
Diana Jupp, Director of Services and Campaigns at Breast Cancer Care, said:
“Whether primary or secondary breast cancer patients, younger or older, what any new system must be able to do is put them and their values at the centre of decisions about which treatments are available on the NHS.”
“I am delighted to see that so many MPs have recognised the importance of this issue, joining us to understand the range of breast cancer experiences and helping Breast Cancer Care call on the Government to ensure that the patient voice is central to the new system of value-based assessment.”
Commenting on the event, Bob said, “I was delighted to be able to meet breast cancer patients and hear first-hand what it is they value when it comes to treatment. My colleagues and I will work hard to ensure that the new system reflects their needs and priorities, providing a more individual and tailored path of treatment”