Lincolnshire nurse says making cancer drug available on the NHS could give her more time

A Lincolnshire nurse with life-limiting cancer is campaigning to make a drug available on the NHS saying it would stop women's lives from being "cut short".

52-year-old Tracy Pratt is from the Pinchbeck area and was diagnosed with secondary breast cancer in 2022 - she says the medication called Enhertu would give people like her more time with friends and family.

She was told she had it in November 2022 after experiencing upper back pain.

We've been speaking to her:

It would give me more time to travel and continue to work as a nurse

""When I heard the news that it had been rejected for use on the NHS, I was in shock."

"I cried, I felt completely let down and lost, sad for me, sad for my family and sad for everyone else in the secondary breast cancer community, that this decision affects."

"Enhertu would give me more quality time to enjoy my life with my family and friends, more time to live with secondary breast cancer."

"It would give me more time to travel and continue to work as a nurse."

"Ultimately it would give me hope."

"This decision does not just affect us living with secondary breast cancer now but also those that will develop it in the future."

"The reality is that the decision is likely to affect you or someone you love in the future."

"This decision must be reversed."

It is understood that talks between parties have resume

Draft guidance published by Nice in September said it would not recommend Enhertu for NHS use in England due to uncertainties in the information provided by the manufacturer and called for more details.

The spending watchdog then paused its appraisal in December while commercial talks were ongoing with pharmaceutical companies Daiichi Sankyo and AstraZeneca, but in March it was announced that the talks concluded without a price agreement in place.

Breast Cancer Now said that health leaders and pharmaceutical companies should "seize the opportunity presented by the delay to Nice's final guidance being published" to find a solution.

It is understood that talks between parties have resumed.

A letter from NHS officials sent to MPs on the parliamentary Health Committee on Tuesday stated: "We can confirm that a further discussion with all relevant parties was held on 15th May, with an expectation of flexibility from all sides

Over a quarter of a million people have signed our Enhertu Emergency petition

However, at this meeting Daiichi Sankyo informed us of the withdrawal of its previous commercial offer and increased the price proposal for the drug."

Baroness Delyth Morgan, chief executive at Breast Cancer Now, said: "Over a quarter of a million people have signed our Enhertu Emergency petition, rallying behind us and keeping up pressure and momentum in calling on Nice, NHS England, Daiichi Sankyo and AstraZeneca to get back around the table to reach a solution to ensure Enhertu is made available on the NHS in England for women who desperately need it.

Lady Morgan added: "Nice's delay to the publication of its final guidance on Enhertu creates a crucial window of opportunity for this heart-breaking situation to be fixed now, and women with HER2-low secondary breast cancer to be granted precious hope of more time to live and to create special moments that matter."

A spokesperson for Daiichi Sankyo said: "Daiichi Sankyo and AstraZeneca welcomed the opportunity to provide evidence to the Health and Social Care Committee and All Party Parliamentary Group on Breast Cancer regarding Nice's decision to not recommend Enhertu for HER2-low metastatic breast cancer, as well as highlight our concerns regarding the impact of changes to Nice's formula on the future launch of treatments targeting late-stage cancers.

We intend to continue further constructive dialogue in the coming week

"As committed to during the meeting we have restarted the dialogue with NHS England and Nice, and the final publication of guidance has been paused while those talks are ongoing."

The spokesperson added: "Our latest formal offer remains on the table. For the avoidance of doubt, this offer has at no point been withdrawn or increased in any way.

As such, we do not recognise the assertions outlined in the letter from NHS England and Nice.

"We have entered into negotiations with NHS England and Nice in good faith to explore compromises on all sides.

We intend to continue further constructive dialogue in the coming weeks and will maintain our commitment to delivering access for all eligible patients in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

"We have secured funding for patients in 17 other countries in Europe including in Scotland in the last 12 months for this patient population.

"We are aware that an appeal of the Nice Committee's assumptions was lodged by patient groups and clinicians on exactly the grounds referenced in the letter which was rejected by Nice without progressing to an appeal panel."

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