In the treatment of AMD (age-related macular degeneration, a form of blindness), there is an “official” drug, Lucentis, an injection that costs around 900 euros. And there is an “unofficial” treatment, Avastin, less expensive (around 50 euros for an injection) and used for a long time in hospital ophthalmology departments, without marketing authorization (AMM). But since Avastin was not suitable for ophthalmological use (it is a drug used for the treatment of certain cancers), its off-label use was finally banned in 2012.
But, it seems that the page of Avastin has not been definitively turned because the Minister of Health, Marisol Touraine, has just transmitted to the Council of State a draft Decree which will allow ophthalmologists to use the anticancer drug Avastin in treatment of AMD (age-related macular degeneration). The decision to authorize or not the product will be up to the National Medicines Safety Agency (ANSM).
Lucentis: a cost for health insurance
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) affects around one million people in France. There are two forms of this disease: the wet form, which can be treated, and the dry form, which can only be relieved. To treat the wet form of AMD, the patient should receive regular injections of Lucentis. Of course, the treatment is reimbursed to the patient, but this treatment is proving to be very costly for the health insurance which, in 2012, paid for it to the tune of 389 million euros.
It is in this context that the Minister of Health has sent a draft Decree which will allow the Medicines Agency to authorize a product outside the Marketing Authorization if it considers that this is necessary for economic reasons. Avastin may then be authorized for the treatment of AMD.
