NICE nixes beta interferons

Beta interferon may not be available freely to Multiple Sclerosis sufferers on the U.K.'s National Health Service, even though the drug has been approved for use. The U.K. government's National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) has reached a preliminary conclusion that there is not enough evidence at the moment to support the general use of beta interferon. That decision has been sent to the companies involved -- different versions of beta interferon are sold by Biogen (BGEN) and Berlex, but it also was leaked to the media. With the drug costing some L10,000 ($15,145) per patient per year, NICE thinks that the money would be better spent on other forms of treatment for MS sufferers, including physiotherapy and other rehabilitation services.

NICE Chairman Sir Michael Rawlins confirmed that the provisional opinion of NICE's appraisal committee is that, while patients already on beta interferon may continue, the drugs should not be made available in the NHS. "This is because, on the basis of a very careful consideration of the evidence, their modest clinical benefit appears to be outweighed by their very high cost," he said in a statement. NICE believes more research is needed and that some of the claimed benefits are the results of a placebo effect. ...