by Matthew Woolf, Education & Outreach Executive
When Giles Turner received his cancer diagnosis, he expected a tough fight to ensue. But what he didn’t expect, was that his chief adversary would the health system itself.
Giles was diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer in March 2023 and the hormone therapy, Abiraterone, played a large part in saving his life. The drug attacks the growth and development of a tumour by blocking an enzyme essential for producing testosterone – which acts as a growth factor in prostate cancer, stimulating the tumour to grow. Cut off from this crucial growth factor, the cancer starves and dies.
But in England, the drug has only been prescribed to those with advanced prostate cancer that had already spread. Patients like Giles, whose cancer was in its early stages, weren’t eligible due to its high cost, even though it had been shown to improve their prognosis. Giles was able to pay to receive the drug privately, a possibility he knew wasn’t open to many others.
The injustice was worsened by the fact that in Scotland and Wales, the NHS already funded the drug for all patients, meaning that in the UK, a person’s prostate cancer outcome could be left to the mercy of their bank balance and postcode.
Giles contacted Prostate Cancer UK, and together they embarked on a campaign to address this inconsistency. A battle ensued. They fought against the time-sapping labyrinths of medical regulations and undertook the hard-sell to pharma companies who had other opportunities to explore once the drugs exclusive patents expired.
But they fought through the maze and convinced the right people. England now offers the drug to all high-risk patients whose cancer has not metastasised. A story that highlights the invaluable work of patient advocates and charitable support, that it is worth the time and effort to bring about positive change.
This is fantastic news for participants in the NHS Jewish BRCA Testing Programme, which is set to reopen later this year. Men who have a mutation in their BRCA2 gene have a 27% increased lifetime risk of developing prostate cancer. Knowledge of this mutation will enable access to more regular screening on the NHS, which can lead to earlier diagnosis. With this drug now approved for use at an early stage, patients will have far more promising treatment options.
There is still work to do in improving care for men with prostate cancer, with the government in Northern Ireland still yet to approve abiraterone for early-stage patients. But patients like Giles, who refuse to let unjust treatment patterns persist, are key in driving this change.
