Three New Cancer Drugs Now Available In Ontario

[RandyW]

Good News For All my friends in CANADA

Three New Cancer Drugs Now Available In Ontario

McGuinty Government Investing $50 Million To Improve Treatment Options

TORONTO, July 2 /CNW/ -

NEWS

Ontario is investing $50 million to give cancer patients better treatment

options with three new drugs - including Avastin for the treatment of

colorectal cancer.

$30 million over the next three years will fund Avastin, a groundbreaking

drug that works by cutting off the blood supply specifically to cancerous

tumours rather than affecting all the cells in the body. Clinical trials have

shown that Avastin is most effective when used as the initial treatment for

advanced colorectal cancer.

The average length of survival for patients who receive Avastin in

combination with other chemotherapy treatments is close to 2 years, compared

to 15 months for patients who do not receive Avastin as part of their therapy.

Ontario is also providing approximately $20 million in funding over the

next three years for Sprycel to treat acute lymphoblastic leukemia and Alimta

to treat non-small cell lung cancer. Sprycel and Alimta both provide new

options for patients who have not had success with initial cancer drug

treatments.

QUOTES

"This is all about improving treatment options for Ontarians who are

suffering from cancer," said David Caplan, Minister of Health and Long-Term

Care, "The McGuinty government is committed to funding new and innovative

cancer drugs, and we're determined to get more Ontarians screened and tested

as early as possible."

"We are committed to improving access to therapies that have proven

medical benefits," said Helen Stevenson, Assistant Deputy Minister and

Executive Officer of the Ontario Public Drug Programs. "Many patients in

Ontario will benefit from the availability of Avastin as first-line therapy

through our publicly funded drug programs. We continue to be transparent in

our decision-making and ensure that all of our decisions have clear, clinical

outcomes to support them."

"For Ontario patients with advanced colorectal cancer, today's

announcement is great news," said Dr. Jim Biagi, Academic Oncologist, Cancer

Centre of South-eastern Ontario and Co-Chair, Gastrointestinal Cancer Disease

Site Group, Cancer Care Ontario. "Patients now have access to Avastin, a

therapy that when added to standard chemotherapy can improve their outlook"

QUICK FACTS

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Ontarians living with advanced colorectal cancer will now have access to

Avastin as a first-line treatment. Ontario will provide more than $30 million

in funding over the next three years through the Ontario Public Drug Programs

(OPDP) to make Avastin publicly available. Avastin will be used as the first

treatment option in therapy for advanced colorectal cancer in Ontario.

Ontario will also provide approximately $20 in funding over the next

three years for Sprycel to treat acute lymphoblastic leukemia and Alimta to

treat non-small cell lung cancer.

AVASTIN

Clinical trials have shown that Avastin is most effective when used as a

first-line treatment for advanced colorectal cancer. The average length of

survival for patients who receive Avastin in combination with other

chemotherapy treatments is close to 2 years, compared to 15 months for

patients who do not receive Avastin as part of their therapy.

Initially, Ontario will fund 12 cycles (treatment for 6 months) of

Avastin. Four additional cycles (treatment for 2 months) will be funded if the

patient's disease has not worsened.

Avastin will not be funded as a second-line therapy. Clinical trial

results have only shown an improvement of less than 2 months. In addition, the

manufacturer of Avastin does not have Health Canada's approval for Avastin in

second-line use, nor did the manufacturer submit a request for funding to the

Ministry of Health and Long Term Care (ministry) for second-line therapy. If

the manufacturer submits new evidence supporting the use of Avastin for other

types of therapy, or in combination with other chemotherapy regimens, it will

be reviewed by the ministry's expert committee, the Committee to Evaluate

Drugs.

First-line treatment refers to the medical therapy that is used for the

initial treatment of a disease. Second-line treatment refers to the medical

therapy that is used when the initial treatment (i.e., first line treatment)

has either failed (disease progresses despite treatment) or has become

intolerable.

TREATMENT FOR COLORECTAL CANCER IN ONTARIO

Since October 1, 2006, Ontario has increased access to drugs for

colorectal cancer. Over the past three years, $53 million has been invested

through Ontario's public drug programs to provide patients suffering from

colorectal cancer with the treatments and therapies they need.

With the addition of Avastin, Ontario provides the following first-line

and second-line treatment options for advanced colorectal cancer:

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In the near future, the ministry intends to require K-RAS oncogene

testing. K-RAS is like a genetic test that will help to identify those

patients more likely to benefit from third-line treatment of advanced

colorectal cancer. Third line treatment refers to medical therapy that is used

when initial treatment (e.g., first-line treatment) and second-line therapy

have failed (disease progresses despite treatment). The ministry will provide

more details on this initiative soon.

ALIMTA

The ministry has also approved funding for Alimta under the New Drug

Funding Program (NDFP) for patients in Ontario who require chemotherapy as

second-line treatment for non-small cell lung cancer. Alimta has proven to be

as effective and better tolerated in many patients than docetaxel, a

chemotherapy drug that is routinely used for the second-line treatment of

non-small cell lung cancer.

The funding of Alimta will provide a treatment option for patients with

lung cancer who have not had success with first-line chemotherapy treatment.

SPRYCEL

Sprycel has also been approved by the ministry for funding under the

Exceptional Access Program for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia

(ALL) for both adult and pediatric patients who did not respond to previous

treatment regimens for ALL.

ONTARIO'S TRANSPARENT DRUG SYSTEM FOR PATIENTS ACT

In 2006, Ontario passed the Transparent Drug System For Patients Act to

improve patient access to drugs. The government's reforms included a rapid

review process for new drugs and the ability to negotiate agreements with

manufacturers. Together, these have enabled faster drug funding decisions.

This means that Ontario patients now receive more timely access to effective

new treatments such as Avastin. Since the Act was introduced (up to

December 31, 2007), 142 new individual brand name drug products are now

funded, of which 31 are specifically for cancer indications.

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Abdulla

South Carolina Drug Treatmen