Twice-a-day pill for advanced breast cancer approved
The life-extending drug, called capivasertib (Truqap), will benefit up to 3,000 women every year.
The approval comes after a U-turn by the National Institute of Care and Health Excellence (Nice), which initially rejected the drug after assessing its cost and benefit to patients.
To be eligible for the treatment, women will have to be diagnosed with a certain type of breast cancer, called hormone receptor (HR)-positive HER2-negative breast cancer. It will also need to have spread to another part of the body.
It is the most common form of incurable breast cancer but treatment options have been limited.
The new drug is suitable for women whose tumours have mutations in the PIK3CA, AKT1 or PTEN genes, which are found in approximately half of patients with this form of breast cancer.
The drug, made by AstraZeneca, works by blocking the action of an abnormal protein that drives the cancer cells to multiply, and so slows their spread.
Results from a clinical trial showed that capivasertib plus the hormone therapy fulvestrant increased the time before the cancer got worse by around 4.2 months compared with placebo plus fulvestrant – from 3.1 months to 7.3 months.
Decades of research
The approval follows decades of research by scientists from the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) in London.
Prof Nicholas Turner, from the ICR and the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, led a major trial into the drug.
'This positive Nice recommendation means that thousands of NHS patients with advanced breast cancer with these specific biomarkers can now receive this innovative targeted treatment to keep their cancer from progressing for longer,' he said.
'It's an immensely rewarding moment to see this drug provide patients with a treatment option and precious extra time with their families.'
About 56,000 people are diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK every year.
Tom Keith Roach, president of AstraZeneca UK, said: 'This is a fantastic story of what UK science can do.
'The partnership between AstraZeneca, the Institute of Cancer Research, and Cancer Research Technology underscores the potential of UK life sciences, which we are working with government to unlock on behalf of patients and the UK growth agenda.'
'Success story for British science'
Prof Kristian Helin, chief executive of the ICR, said: 'Around half of patients with this kind of breast cancer have mutations in one or more of the genes, and for these patients capivasertib can halt disease progression.'
He said it was 'a great success story for British science'.
The treatment will be immediately funded through a ring-fenced pot of money to roll out cancer drugs in England.
Prof Paul Workman, former chief executive of the ICR and researcher in the drug discovery project, said it was a 'landmark moment'.
Claire Rowney, chief executive of Breast Cancer Now, criticised the initial rejection by Nice as causing unnecessary delays for women.
'This happens too often and urgent action must be taken to ensure the quick approval of breast cancer drugs so they can be made available promptly to those who need them,' she said.
She called on NHS England to 'put in place prompt genetic testing' to identify those who would benefit.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Record
an hour ago
- Daily Record
Nearly 2,000 patient falls recorded in Dumfries and Galloway during course of 2024
The number of falls recorded has risen by more than a third in the past five years. Nearly 2,000 patient falls were recorded in Dumfries and Galloway last year. And the number of falls recorded has risen by more than a third in the space of five years. The figures were revealed following a series of freedom of information requests by Scottish Labour. South Scotland Labour MSP Colin Smyth said: 'Falls can be life-changing for older and more vulnerable patients. 'Figures in Dumfries and Galloway have increased by a third since 2019, which is shocking. 'With long queues at accident and emergency and out-of-date hospitals, hard-working NHS staff are already stretched to breaking point. 'The SNP must act now to ensure that patients don't come to unnecessary harm because of the condition of the estate or overcrowding.' NHS Dumfries and Galloway was one of nine health boards which saw a rise in patient falls between 2019 and 2024. There were 1,976 recorded falls in 2024, compared to 1,478 in 2019 – an increase of 34 per cent. There have already been 704 falls recorded in 2025. Across Scotland, there were 282,385 falls in 2024 – which represented a five per cent increase on the 2019 tally of 43,358. An NHS Dumfries and Galloway spokesman said: 'An increase in falls is an indicator of increased frailty –- and we have seen the numbers of people coming into hospital with underlying frailty increase over recent years. 'This is reflective of an older population, and can be an indicator of a general health decline among these populations within our communities. 'Work takes place to address movement of people while in hospital, noting the potential for rapid deconditioning – with muscle mass lost for every day someone spends in a chair or in bed. 'Teams need to balance the risk of increased deconditioning by maintaining mobility against the risk of falls while someone is in hospital. 'A falls risk assessment and management plan is completed for those identified as being at risk of falling, and we have worked with boards across Scotland to improve patient safety and reduce risk, with programmes in place to maintain mobility. 'There is also work aimed at preventing people from coming into hospital, which is a major focus of our Home Teams and Hospital at Home work. 'This reflects the fact that hospitals are clinical settings and not always the safest place for frail, older people who are already identified as vulnerable. 'A key objective amid our ongoing work is to ensure that people who no longer have a medical need to remain in hospital return safely home or to a homely setting as quickly as possible.' A Scottish Government spokesperson said: 'Patient safety is paramount and Scottish Ministers are committed to ensuring all health and care is safe, effective and patient-centred.'In 2025-26, NHS boards received increased investment in their baseline funding, bringing total investment to over £16.2 billion.'And the Scottish Government's Budget is providing more than £1 billion in capital investment, with £140 million additional funding targeted at high risk areas of maintenance and repair of the existing estate, equipment and digital replacement.'
Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Daily Mirror
What the end of 'backyard' beauty treatments means for your injectable appointments
The government has outlined plans for aesthetic procedure regulation in England – here's what it means for you If you've had a scroll on social media lately, you'll know that injectable aesthetics, anti-wrinkle injections, filler and skin boosters, have never been more popular. But dive a little deeper and you'll also see the horror stories: botched and leaking lips, lopsided brows and even hospital admissions. For too long, the UK's non-surgical aesthetics scene has been a bit of a 'wild west', with non-medically trained practitioners offering invasive treatments from their homes, back rooms and, unbelievably, public toilets. That might be about to change. The UK Government has just announced a new licensing scheme for England following its 2023 consultation, aiming to regulate non-surgical aesthetic procedures. In short, wrinkle-relaxing injections and filler appointments could soon only be carried out in properly accredited clinics by trained medical professionals. You might assume this is already happening, but these 'backyard' injectable appointments have been on the rise and causing havoc for trained professionals and for the NHS. Dr Ash Soni, plastic and reconstructive surgeon and founder of The Soni Clinic, has seen firsthand the risks of the current lack of rules. 'In the last few months, there were 41 cases of botulism from cheap Botox done by a non-medic,' he explains. 'We've had people hospitalised with sepsis after a botched Brazilian Butt Lift, and even deaths from fillers injected in someone's garden shed. And yes, there's even been a report of injectables being done in a public toilet. It's ridiculous.' Aside from the personal harm, the NHS is carrying a huge burden. Complications from unregulated treatments- infections, allergic reactions, sepsis- inevitably end up in hospital A&E departments. The problem, Dr Soni says, is that until now, these cases haven't been logged specifically as injectable-related, making it hard to track the scale of the problem. The new rules, while still light on specifics, will likely mean that only doctors, nurses, dentists and only other licensed prescribers can legally carry out these treatments. And for prescription-only products like Botox, that means sourcing through legitimate medical channels, not from ' eBay or the back of a lorry', as Dr Soni describes. 'Some of these providers don't know what they're injecting, how to dilute it, or what to do if something goes wrong,' he warns. If you regularly book in for injectables, you might be wondering how this will affect you. In reality, if you're going to a reputable clinic, not much will change, except that your safety is further protected. The crackdown is aimed at cutting out unsafe operators, the ones who can undercut prices by using untraceable, poor-quality products. So if you've been heading to see someone without a proper license for cut-price injectables, it will mean you'll have to spend a bit more to see an expert, and to ultimately ensure you get the best standard of care. Though the temptation to save money is hard to resist, especially if you're struggling with the rising costs everything, Dr Soni says it's a false economy: 'People end up spending way more to fix bad work. You're paying for correction and then the treatment all over again. Some of these 'backyard' places charge less than I pay for my own products, which should tell you everything about their quality.' His advice is simple: do your research. Check credentials, look for a clean and professional clinic and remember you're trusting someone with your face (or body). 'If you're going to do it, do it in the most experienced hands. It's worth the investment,' he says. The hope is that the new licensing scheme will end unsafe treatments and give patients peace of mind that when they walk into a clinic, the products, setting and practitioner meet professional standards. After all, no good can really come from Botox in a shed, can it?
Leader Live
an hour ago
- Leader Live
Concerns over jobs for paramedic graduates in Wales
Figures have revealed that just 20 of the 67 paramedic graduates in Wales, funded in part by the Welsh Government, have been offered jobs by the Welsh Ambulance Service (WAS) this year. This is despite the Welsh Ambulance Service requesting 86 Paramedics to be trained and paid for through Welsh Government funding. The figures were revealed by Senedd candidate for Swansea and Gower Sam Bennett and Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader and Senedd Member Jane Dodds, acting on reports from local residents and writing to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, Jeremy Miles, for confirmation, which he has since done. The Welsh Liberal Democrats are now calling on the Welsh Government to "urgently intervene" and create more posts so as to prevent the time and money spent training much-needed qualified Paramedics from being wasted. Commenting on the figures, Jane Dodds MS said: 'With record response times across Wales, the Welsh Government have an opportunity here to get more trained Paramedics responding to incidents. We cannot afford to lose these highly skilled professionals, especially not at a time when the NHS is under this much pressure. 'It is shocking, despite funding 86 Paramedic Students to be trained, that less than half will be recruited. At a time when Paramedics are desperately needed to help improve Ambulance response times, that so few are to be hired is a scandal. 'The Welsh Government should now step in and ensure that these trained and qualified Paramedics are hired to relieve the strain on the Welsh Ambulance Service.' TOP STORIES TODAY Unite confirms that bin strikes WILL go ahead in Wrexham New burger restaurant 'Smashies' opens its doors in Wrexham In response to the concerns raise, Carl Kneeshaw, the Welsh Ambulance Service's Director of People, said: 'As a result of changes to skill mix, changes in working patterns and the financial landscape within the NHS, we unfortunately initially found ourselves in the challenging position of not being able to offer Newly Qualified Paramedic roles to a number of recent graduates from Welsh universities. 'However, we have worked in collaboration with colleagues from Health Education and Improvement Wales and partner organisations across NHS Wales to find solutions, and we are really pleased to say that we will be able to offer roles in the near future to those graduates who were successful at interview.' In their response, the Welsh Government added: "We are committed to ensuring our investment in NHS education and training is supported by meaningful employment opportunities. 'This includes exploring alternative employment within the NHS, including roles in emergency care, accident and emergency, and primary care settings, for the students affected. 'We are working closely with the Welsh Ambulance Services Trust, Health Education and Improvement Wales and universities to address these challenges and support graduates.'
