Pharmac To Fund Bevacizumab For Ovarian Cancer

New Zealand women with ovarian cancer finally have funded access to bevacizumab. Pharmac’s announcement yesterday comes ten years after the treatment was funded in Australia, and follows a long fight by the Ovarian Cancer Foundation New Zealand (OCFNZ) to get women access, with Pharmac proposing to decline the application twice in recent years.

Bevacizumab will be funded from 1 March, 2025, for advanced epithelial ovarian cancer meeting certain criteria, under the brand name Vegzelma. OCFNZ welcomes this decision but says it has taken far too long - in the decade this drug sat on Pharmac’s waitlist, hundreds of women faced an impossible choice: self-fund treatment at an overwhelming personal cost or go without, potentially losing precious time with their loved ones.

While OCFNZ appreciates Pharmac’s announcement, concerns also remain about treatment gaps. Despite the Government’s $604 million investment in Pharmac over four years (announced in 2024), New Zealand’s national medicines budget remains inadequate, ranking us last out of 20 OECD countries for access to modern medicine.

An application for another ovarian cancer treatment called Caelyx, also funded in Australia, has been waiting with Pharmac since 2006. Alongside the alliance of Cancer Non-Govermental Organisations (CANGO) and Patient Voice Aotearoa, OCFNZ continues to advocate for greater Pharmac funding to improve New Zealanders’ access to medicine.

Jane Ludemann, founder of OCFNZ, welcomes the decision but says it highlights the broader issue of medicine access in New Zealand: “This is a really important milestone for ovarian cancer and will make a difference to many Kiwi women. It highlights Pharmac’s funding gap, which must be addressed to ensure Kiwis have timely access to the best treatments.

“We must keep pushing for progress in ovarian cancer treatment. The funding of bevacizumab is a significant step forward, but OCFNZ remains committed to working with decision-makers to improve access to life-saving medicines.”

The announcement comes during Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, held every February. This year’s theme is ‘It’s time to talk about ovarian cancer’. OCFNZ are sharing stories from women and families affected by ovarian cancer to spark important conversations and hosting their annual fundraiser Show Up for Ovarian Cancer with over 170 participants showing up in support of women.

More information: Read more about bevacizumab and how we got here : https://ovariancancerfoundation.org.nz/news/bevacizumab-update-2024/

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