Pharmac Proposes To Fund More Medicines For Melanoma

Video file | Geraldine MacGibbon, Director Pharmaceuticals, discusses our proposal [MP4 | 63MB]

Pharmac is consulting on a proposal to fund more medicines for melanoma, a type of skin cancer, from 1 June 2025. The medicines are:

• pembrolizumab (branded as Keytruda) for stage 3B or more advanced melanoma that can be removed by surgery
• dabrafenib (branded as Tafinlar) and trametinib (branded as Mekinist) for melanoma with a BRAF mutation that:
  • is stage 3B or more advanced and can be removed by surgery
  • has spread around the body or can’t be removed by surgery

Pharmac’s Director Pharmaceuticals, Geraldine MacGibbon, says funding these medicines would provide more treatment options to use around the time of surgery, or if people’s cancer is at a later stage and they can’t have surgery.

“These medicines would help prevent people’s cancer from spreading or coming back, which may help people live longer.”

Pembrolizumab is an immunotherapy, a targeted cancer treatment that helps the body’s immune system fight cancer cells. The medicines dabrafenib with trametinib are used together to create a stronger response to the cancer. They are taken orally which means people will be able to take them at home rather than travelling to a health clinic or hospital for treatment.

Pharmac estimates that about 260 people with melanoma would access these medicines in the first year of funding.

“We think these medicines will make a real difference for people, and we’re keen to hear what people think of our proposal before we make a decision,” says MacGibbon.

Consultation on Pharmac’s funding proposal for these medicines is now open and will close on Friday 4 April.

The Government provided additional funding to Pharmac in June 2024 to fund new medicines and widen access to medicines that are already funded. Since receiving the additional funding, Pharmac has funded 50 medicines for different health conditions (including the medicines in this announcement) and is currently considering 11 more.

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