NICE rejects Erbitux (cetuximab) in draft guidance as a treatment for head and neck cancer.- Merck KGaA

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) originally published guidance in 2009 concluding that Erbitux (cetuximab) is not cost effective as a treatment for recurrent and/or metastatic squamous cell cancer of the head and neck, but the drug later became available to patients on the NHS through the Cancer Drugs Fund. NICE is now assessing the drug under its programme to reappraise medicines currently funded for NHS use via the Cancer Drugs Fund.

Merck KGaA has presented further evidence not included in their original submission and narrowed the target treatment population to those with mouth cancer only, which affects around 2,300 people in England and Wales. However, despite despite new evidence and a drop in price Erbitux was still not cost effective. The draft guidance is open for public consultation until 22 November 2016.