2 September 2019 - Breast Cancer Foundation NZ has given an overall thumbs-up to today’s spate of cancer-related announcements from the Ministry of Health and PHARMAC.

“These announcements are an acknowledgement that Kiwis deserve world-class cancer care, and outline some concrete steps towards closing that gap,” said Evangelia Henderson, chief executive of Breast Cancer Foundation NZ. “We’re excited at the potential to eliminate inequities for Māori and Pacific people, along with regional variations in care. The additional funding for drugs offers a chance to bring New Zealand into line with the countries we should expect to be on a par with.”

The Minister of Health announced a total of $60m in additional drug funding, some of which will be spent on new advanced breast cancer drugs, according to statements from PHARMAC. PHARMAC plans to fund fulvestrant, and will negotiate agreements for a CDK4/6 inhibitor, the class of drugs for which patients and advocates have been petitioning and protesting in recent months.

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