R.J Steffens

Genentech: Britain's National Health Won't Pay for Avastin

"The biotechnology industry counters that they must be paid huge sums for small innovations to promote expensive research. Progress is in slow and steady steps, with very few dramatic breakthroughs. The industry claims that traditional cost-benefits should not apply."

Interesting article, thanks. In a somewhat related note, I wrote an article about two promising peptide based BC vaccines that are in development in collaboration with the United States Military Cancer Institute:

seekingalpha.com/artic...

The peptide vacines mentioned would cost much less than Herceptin or Avastin. E75 has shown survival benefit in a subgroup of a completed Phase II, and AE37 is now in a large efficacy Phase II trial and last week AE37 was also announced that it is to be trialed at the Mayo Clinic for a melanoma vaccine. AE37 is already in a prostate cancer vaccine trial at prestigous St Savas.

Continued success for Col Peoples and these vaccines would be great news, and give her2 expressing cancer patients MUCH less expensive treatment options for safe and effective treatment. These peptide vaccines have had no safety concerns and in the case of AE37, it was the first ever to have a robust immuno response without an adjuvant.

Hence, the "dramatic breakthroughs" may come from the smallest of companies, whose research is attracting the greatest of collaborators. If approved, they would shake up the entire vaccine and oncology field. With much lower projected costs, it should be a new treatment the British National Health Service and our own insurance companies would support.