NICE has recommended Ninlaro (ixazomib) with lenalidomide and dexamethasone as an option relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM) in adults who have received two or three lines of therapy.
Since its launch in December 2017, ixazomib has been funded through the Cancer Drugs Fund and has been used to treat over 4,000 patients in England.
Ixazomib is the first and only oral proteasome inhibitor licensed in combination with lenalidomide and dexamethasone for this indication.
Shelagh McKinlay, Head of Patient Advocacy at Myeloma UK, said: “We have been working with NICE and other stakeholders for several years to ensure access to this therapy is maintained and we are thrilled with the outcome of this appraisal. There aren’t many treatment options for patients in the third-line setting, which is why maintaining access to ixazomib was so critically important.
“This regimen also provides patients with an all-oral option that allows them the convenience of receiving their treatment in their own homes. For the thousands of people living with multiple myeloma in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, this decision brings reassurance that ixazomib in the NICE approved setting is now routinely available on the NHS.”
The recommendation from NICE is based on the results of the Phase III TOURMALINE-MM1 study.
Professor Graham Jackson, Consultant Haematologist, Freeman Hospital, Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Trust, commented: “This treatment has become an important standard of care in relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma over the past five years, so I am delighted with this final decision from NICE. It has been quite a journey to ensure this valuable treatment continues to be available to patients and the clinical and patient communities have engaged fully in the process. This welcome decision gives us more certainty in the treatment options available to our patients.”
