A terminally ill woman has spoken of her suffering after being told that the Government will refuse to pay for a chemotherapy drug called TDM1. The Woman in question named Margaret Ready is a long term cancer patient and was told that she will no longer be able to apply for the treatment due to government cutbacks.
An upset Margaret has told the media that this latest decision makes her feel “utterly worthless”. The move comes after the Minister for Health Leo Varadkar released a statement earlier today saying that the HSE will not supply the drug as it was not cost effective, and the drug was no more effective clinically than current existing treatments.
Ms Ready had hoped that she would be given the drug that would significantly pro-long her life but was told that the drug had not received the required public funding and therefore was subsequently turned down by the price watchdog last year.
Ms Ready also said she was very disappointed by the response Mr Varadkar gave today. She said: “It just makes you feel worthless…I didn’t ask him to overturn scientific fact. All I asked of him was to find out why it was taking so long for the drug to be funded, and why they were in negotiations for over a year.”
This latest refusal of a potentially life saving drugs comes after the government refused to issue a drug called Soliris which is used to treat diseases such as Paroxysmal Nocturnal Hemoglobinuria (PNH) and atypical Haemolytic Uraemic (aHUS) last year. However the government drastically made a u-turn earlier this year after protest by group of patients won their battle so that the drug could be issued.