Tablet for breast cancer coming to NHS - what expert Manchester doctor says

The NHS is set to introduce a new once-a-day tablet that targets advanced breast cancer, with around 1,100 patients in England expected to benefit from the treatment.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), which issues advice to the NHS on which drugs it should use, has issued final guidance on the drug lacestrant, also known as Korserdu, after initially rejecting it in October.

An expert Manchester doctor has praised the move as a "step change" in treatment for cancer patients. While Breast Cancer Now has hailed the decision but shared concerns about access to breast cancer medications, saying it is “deeply concerned that the system is not working in getting all secondary breast cancer drugs to the people who so badly need them”. “The decision to make elacestrant available on the NHS marks a step change in the treatment of this challenging form of metastatic breast cancer,” said Dr Ciara O’Brien, Consultant Medical Oncologist at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust. “We now have an option that can overcome resistance to hormone therapy in breast cancer and keep the disease at bay for significantly longer compared to the standard of care shown in the trial. "It is only for certain patients, and a blood test will be needed to confirm who may be suitable; but for those who are eligible, it is an important step forward. ” Claire Rowney, chief executive of Breast Cancer Now, said: "It’s fantastic news that elacestrant has been approved for use on the NHS in England, providing for the first time a targeted treatment specifically for certain people with ER-positive, HER2-negative incurable secondary breast cancer with an ESR1 mutation." She added: "Following its provisional rejection in October,