Years delays in highly innovative cancer drugs reaching NHS patients

Although the number of licensed cancer drugs is increasing, the most innovative therapies are reaching patients slower than more conventional treatments, possibly due to a highly risk-averse system which hinders their progress to patients. A report from The Institute of Cancer Research (London, UK) has found that highly innovative, new cancer drugs going through clinical trials and approval processes are more likely to be delayed or rejected, compared with conventional therapies. Published in the journal Drug Discovery Today, the results of the study show that the most innovative cancer drugs take 3.2 years longer to reach patients through the NHS...