Pharmac has opened consultation to fund Keytruda for five cancer indications (Triple Negative Breast, Head and Neck,
Colorectal, Bladder and Hodgkin-Lymphoma) as well as Opdivo for Kidney cancer. Pharmac is looking to fund Keytruda from
October and Opdivo from November.
States Chair of Patient Voice Aotearoa Malcolm Mulholland ``This is great news for the 500 or so patients who will
benefit from the funding of these drugs. However, we as a country do have to remember why it is taking so long for these
drugs to reach patients; it is because Pharmac has been underfunded for so many years. Today’s news is proof of the good
work that Pharmac can do when it is resourced properly.
“Today I’m thinking of those patients and representatives who marched to Parliament five years ago under the banner of
“Right to Live”. Some of the medicines Pharmac are now consulting on were being petitioned to be funded that day. They
included Keytruda for those with the rare Lynch Syndrome and for patients with Head and Neck cancer. Having Keytruda
funded to treat those with Lynch Syndrome means that the 22-year drought of having nothing funded for bowel cancer is
finally broken. Also that day, a petition was presented for Pharmac to fund Continuous Glucose Meters (CGM’s) for
diabetes patients, another consultation that Pharmac are currently undertaking.
“To hear that this will be the first of many funding announcements Pharmac will be making due to their recent budget
uplift is life-changing news for patients. Some will now be able to make more memories with their loved ones and that is
something well worth celebrating.