Almost 2000 people with leukaemia, advanced kidney cancer, bladder cancer and liver cancer will have affordable access to new treatment options, paying as little as AU$6.50 a script.
The Liberal National Government is investing more than AU$200 million to list four new breakthrough cancer treatments on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS), saving patients up to a quarter of a million dollars a year.
Almost 1,800 eligible patients with leukaemia, advanced kidney cancer, bladder cancer and liver cancer will have new and innovative treatment options that have the potential to save and extend the lives of thousands of Australians and pay a little as AU$6.50 a script.
The new PBS cancer listings from 1 March 2019 include Venclexta (venetoclax) for relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, combination therapy Opdivo (nivolumab) and Yervoy (ipilimumab) for stage IV clear cell variant renal cell carcinoma, Keytruda (pembrolizumab) for locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer, and Lenvima (lenvatinib) for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma.
Since 2013, the Australian Government has more than 2,000 new or amended items on the PBS. This represents an average of around 30 listings per month—or one each day— at an overall cost of around AU$10.6 billion. [APBN]