– I am so moved today. The tears are pressing on, says a choked-up Ellen Harris Utne to news. She is chairman of the Breast Cancer Association, and has long fought for Norwegian patients to benefit from the medicine. She says that it means an incredible amount that the Decision Forum now says yes to the medicine, but admits that there are both good and bad feelings that have been awakened today. – This has been going on for so long. These patients do not have that time. At the same time, those who have been waiting can benefit from it, says Utne. A fight The Trodelvy medicine will be able to extend the lives of around 50-60 Norwegian women with incurable triple-negative breast cancer, and according to the Breast Cancer Association, studies show that the treatment extends life significantly compared to today’s standard treatment. As early as mid-July, the medicine will be used in public hospitals in Norway. But the road there has been long. – We have fought and fought, adds Utne. The Norwegian Medicines Agency registered Trodelvy as a case for New Methods in May 2021, and in June of the same year the Ordering Forum for New Methods decided on a rapid method assessment with a cost-benefit assessment of the treatment. Until now, the medicine has only been offered at private clinics in Norway, where the patient has had to pay for the treatment themselves. – After all, this is a group that has a limited lifespan, but the medicine can help for a longer lifespan and a much better quality of life. 50-60 may sound like a low number, but there are many families, says Utne. High price The decision-making forum has previously said no to the medicine, partly because of the high price. Now they have turned the matter around. – There is a price and a new assessment of research that has become available on the result, says leader of Beslutningsforum and managing director of Helse Vest, Inger Cathrine Bryne, to Dagens Medisin. Bryne does not want to say anything about the use of time, despite repeated criticism from the Breast Cancer Association who believe the decision has taken too long. – I have no understanding of the time it has taken. You cannot put a price on a human life. I hope there will be a change in the system soon. Patients should not suffer from slow treatment times, concludes Utne.
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