NHS Scotland Accepts Five New Treatments

The Scottish Medicines Consortium has recommended the acceptance of five new medicines for routine use by NHS Scotland.

The following drugs were accepted: Kadcyla (trastuzumab emtansine), for HER2 positive metastatic breast cancer; Imbruvica (ibrutinib), in chronic lymphocytic leukemia; Zinbryta (aclizumab), for severe or relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis; Truvada (emtricitabine /tenofovir disoproxil), also known as PrEP treatment for preventing transmission of HIV; and Taltz (ixekizumab), for the treatment of plaque psoriasis.

The committee was unable to recommend Brilique (ticagrelor), which may be used with aspirin to prevent problems caused by blood clots and hardening of the arteries. The consortium’s previous advice on the use of Brilique for up to one year after a heart attack is unchanged.