Life-saving cancer drug marks 20 years on Australia's medicines list
Trastuzumab is a drug that changed HER2-positive breast cancer survival. It joined Australia's PBS 20 years ago today.
On 1 October 2006, trastuzumab became available on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. The drug was for HER2-positive early-stage breast cancer.
Before that, Australian women without access to clinical trials paid between $50,000 and $70,000 each year for the drug. Many went without.
The drug works by attaching to cancer cell receptors. It is now the most common HER2-targeted therapy in Australia and New Zealand.
A major trial called HERA enrolled more than 5,000 patients from 39 countries. The trial showed trastuzumab greatly improved long-term disease-free survival.
One survivor is Donna Rullo. She was patient number one in the trial.
She credits the drug with saving her life.
- 1 October 2006
- PBS listing date
- 50,000 to 70,000 dollars
- Annual cost before PBS
- 5,000+ from 39 countries
- HERA trial patients
- Up to 1 in 5 breast cancer cases
- HER2-positive breast cancer prevalence
Why it mattersThe drug's inclusion on the PBS transformed cancer treatment. It went from unaffordable to accessible. This allowed thousands of Australian women to survive HER2-positive breast cancer.
AustraliaOne in five Australian breast cancer cases are HER2-positive; survival rates for all breast cancers have improved to 93 per cent five-year survival, up from 75 per cent in 1991.
✓ Claims checked against the source. checked 2 h ago
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