[Shasown]

Cancer sufferers in the UK are still failing to get drugs widely available elsewhere in Europe despite Government efforts to speed up approvals, the Tories have said.

No treatment had been given full watchdog approval since proposals to speed up the process were unveiled in November 2008, shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley said.

And schemes allowing patients to share the cost of expensive drugs while under NHS care were not being considered by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (Nice) in almost half of cases.

Nice defended its record and said it would be "misleading" to patients and a waste of taxpayers' money to recommend the widespread use of drugs for patients who may not benefit.

But in a bid to move the pre-election skirmishing on to the battleground of health, Tory leader David Cameron will meet kidney cancer campaigners to discuss their concerns.

One drug for that condition - Sorafenib - had been refused approval by Nice but was widely used elsewhere in Europe, the party complained in a dossier of decisions.

Former health secretary Alan Johnson agreed in 2008 that patients would be allowed to pay privately for medicines while still receiving NHS care following a number of vocal protests. He also pledged to speed up the process of approving new drugs for use on the NHS with the aim of minimising the numbers forced to pay for treatment.

Mr Lansley said figures showed cost-sharing "patient access schemes" had not been considered in 40% of cases, a quarter of drugs had not been approved and others restricted. He said in 19 out of 21 cases, patients were less likely to be allowed access to a drug than in other European countries and were half as likely or less to be given the drug.

Nice chief executive Sir Andrew Dillon hit back, pointing out that the watchdog recommended the use of 85% of the new drugs it looked at and was prioritising those that potentially extended life.

He went on: "Not all patients with a particular condition benefit from a drug and some drugs only work really well for some patients or at a particular stage in a disease. It's wrong to recommend the use of treatments where the additional benefit is uncertain. This is misleading for patients and wastes scarce NHS resources."


http://uk.news.yahoo.com/21/20100403...d-6323e80.html

So much for caring for their voters.

[Patrick]

So Unfair

[bananarama]

Originally Posted by Shasown

So much for caring for their voters.

When the Tories were in there was barely a national health service.......The tories are the last people on earth to moan about labours record in that department..........No doubt some mugs will believe Camerons spin that he will provide what labour don't.........

Cameron can reduce taxes.......He can give away inheritence tax to the most rich......He can ring fence some departemnts spending and at the same time reduce the deficit without causing unemployment to go through the roof......

Any one believing such lying bull**** deserves a Tory government......

[Shasown]

Originally Posted by bananarama

When the Tories were in there was barely a national health service.......The tories are the last people on earth to moan about labours record in that department..........No doubt some mugs will believe Camerons spin that he will provide what labour don't.........

Cameron can reduce taxes.......He can give away inheritence tax to the most rich......He can ring fence some departemnts spending and at the same time reduce the deficit without causing unemployment to go through the roof......

Any one believing such lying bull**** deserves a Tory government......

Yeah and the Last Labour administration built it from the roots up and made it into the envy of the whole world.

Get a grip, you are fast losing what little hold on reality you had.

[WOMBAI]

All I know is that the staffing levels on many wards at the moment is appauling - making life very difficult for staff and patients alike - can the tories do any worse - I don't know! But definitely don't have a lot of faith in labour at the moment!

[BBDodge]

Drug companies make obscene profits. The blame lies totally with them.