HERE we go again, I refer to the article ‘Cancer drug will not be funded’ (Echo, May 4).
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) stated that ‘it would like to recommend Dinutuximab Beta for inclusion in the Cancer Drugs Fund (CDF) but it was too expensive to do so’.
It is evidently estimated, that this same drug would cost the NHS thousands of pounds in treating people for neuroblastoma cancer, (which could enable cancer patients to live a bit longer), as in the case of six year old football team mascot, the late and certainly brave, Bradley Lowery.
So, which is important – money or human life? If a drug is available to help people with a painful and life threatening disease (no matter the cost), then the drug (or drugs) should be available on the NHS.
Instead of such huge amounts of money being won on the Euro Lottery and the English Lottery, surely these huge amounts of winning lottery money could be reduced, and spent on this cancer drug and other drugs, and also to help the homeless and single struggling parents in this country today.
Roland Bramham, Richmond
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