Kisqali added to the PBS

A medication that has cost breast cancer sufferers more than $70,000 a year will have its costs slashed to between $39.50 and $6.40 per script after being placed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS).

More than 3000 Australian patients with inoperable or metastatic hormone receptor positive breast cancer will benefit from the listing of ribociclib (Kisqali®).

The listing means instead of patients paying more than $5000 a month they will instead pay between $76 and $470.

Hormone receptor positive tumours are the most common form of breast cancer and account for most of the deaths from the disease.

By inhibiting two proteins that drive the growth of tumour cells, ribociclib — used in combination with other drugs — will slow the progression of inoperable and metastatic breast cancers in patients.

Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt told the Sunday Mail the listing of the drug was part of the Coalition’s “rock solid” commitment to the PBS.

“Since coming into Government, the Coalition has helped improve the health of Australians by subsidising approximately $9 billion worth of new medicines,” Mr Hunt said.

Breast Cancer Network Australia Director of Policy and Advocacy, Danielle Spence has welcomed the listing that her organisation had lobbied for.

“The listing means that no woman newly diagnosed with hormone-positive, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer will hear the words, ‘your breast cancer has spread’, followed by, ‘treatment may cost you up to $5000 per month’.”