Pioneering asthma treatment ruled not cost-effective
12 August 2010

Children in England aged 6-11 years with the most severe, allergic asthma are being denied a pioneering treatment that could free them from crippling daily asthma symptoms. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) today refused to recommend omalizumab (Xolair) because it does not believe the medicine to be cost-effective.

NICE stated the drug’s high cost does not justify its ‘little extra benefit compared with existing treatments’.  However, parents whose children have taken the drug have reported dramatic improvements in their children’s asthma and quality of life.

Omalizumab is the first in a generation of drugs for severe, allergic asthma, where patients have high levels of an antibody called IgE in the blood, resulting in an oversensitive immune system. Omalizumab prevents IgE from starting the reaction that leads to asthma symptoms occurring. 
 Omalizumab has fewer side effects than the more common oral corticosteroids (OCS) medicines. OCS-related side-effects include growth retardation, osteoporotic fractures, diabetes and cardiovascular events such as hypertension and heart failure.

NICE has already approved omalizumab for adults and children aged 12 or over. 
 The decision not to approve the drug for children under 12 is contrary to the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) which has already approved omalizumab for under 12s in Scotland.

Dr Mike Thomas, Chief Medical Adviser to Asthma UK, said:  ‘Patients will once again be faced with a treatment postcode lottery depending on where they live in the UK.
 
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For parents of children with severe asthma aged 6-11 who have already trialled Xolair and had their lives transformed, this news will come as a massive blow. It’s vital that these children do not have the treatment withdrawn by PCTs as a result of the NICE decision, as this would be completely unjust.’



Asthma UK will continue to fight for omalizumab to be made available to people of all ages with severe asthma throughout the UK.