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 NHS England said it was fast-tracking lung cancer drug sotorasib
after it was shown in clinical trials to stop lung cancer
progression for seven months.
The drug, taken as a tablet, will be used on patients with the KRAS
G12C mutation that occurs in about 13% of non-small cell lung
cancers (NSCLC), the most common type of lung cancer.
The early-access deal will see 600 patients a year receive sotorasib
in England through the state-run National Health Service (NHS).
"This revolutionary treatment has taken decades of research to reach
the clinic, and now that it is here this new targeted drug will be
available for eligible people with lung cancer as quickly as
possible thanks to this agreement," said Peter Johnson, NHS clinical
director for cancer.
Charles Swanton, chief clinician at charity Cancer Research UK, said
the drug was "one of the most exciting breakthroughs in lung cancer
treatment in 20 years, targeting a cancer gene that was previously
untargetable."
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 The use of sotorasib in Britain follows its
accelerated approval in May in the United States
for lung cancer patients with the KRAS G12C
mutation whose disease has worsened after
treatment with chemotherapy or other medicines.
It is sold in the United States under the brand
name Lumakras.
Britain's medicine regulator, the Medicines and
Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA),
has authorised the drug under a partnership with
U.S. and Australian counterparts designed to
speed up approval for promising cancer
treatments, called Orbis.
(Reporting by Alistair Smout; Editing by Bill
Berkrot)
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