UK Body NICE Says Novartis, Bristol Cancer Drugs Too Expensive

The U.K.'s health-cost regulator said Tuesday it was unable to recommend two expensive cancer drugs fromNovartis AG (NVS) and one from U.S.-based Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMY) for use within the state-run National Health Service in England and Wales.



The independent National Institute for Clinical Excellence, known by its acronym NICE, provisionally rejected Switzerland-based Novartis' Tasigna and U.S.-based Bristol-Myers Squibb' Sprycel for chronic myeloid leukaemia in patients who are intolerant to imatinib--an older Novartis drug whose brand name is Gleevec--saying evidence to support their effectiveness was "very poor" and their cost was "extremely high".
The independent agency also rejected Novartis's tumor treatment Afinitor as a second-line treatment for advanced kidney cancer in a draft ruling.
Commenting on Afinitor, NICE director Peter Littlejohns in a statement said "NHS resources are limited and NICE has to decide which treatments represent best value to the patient as well as the NHS. Although evidence implies that this treatment is clinically effective, there is limited data about how long it can extend life."
Turning to the body's decision not to recommend Tasigna and Sprycel, Littlejohns said that "we need to be sure they are effective. It would be heartening to hear that the pharmaceutical company manufacturers are prepared to share some of the very high cost of the drugs with the NHS."
NICE has previously struck deals with drug makers to cut the cost of treatments before recommending them for use in the National Health Service.

-By Sten Stovall, Dow Jones Newswires; +44 207 842 9292; sten.stovall@dowjones.com

Dear Dustbin man...sorry.... environmental disposal technician...... a request..

Dear Sir(s).

As it is I already sort out my rubbish for you before it goes in the bin,I then wheel out the bin from the rear of my house,up the drive, and place it a few feet from the curb for your convenience, then, after you have emptied it, I wheel it back down my drive to the rear of my home and place it in its designated place.

Is it too much to ask that you could at least put my emptied bins back somewhere within  10 yards on the spot I left it in ?

Thanks.

:-)

(Yes,there is a hint of sarcasm within this message!)
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Union slams Cadbury's shift to Poland as 700 jobs are cut

Unite, the manufacturing trade union, yesterday accused Cadbury Schweppes of behaving like an "asset-stripping private equity firm" following the company's announcement that it would shed 700 jobs by outsourcing chocolate production to Poland.

Cadbury said it planned to shut its factory in Keynsham, near Bristol, by 2010, with the loss of 500 jobs, while 200 further posts would go in Bournville, in the Midlands, at the plant where it has been producing chocolate for almost 130 years.

Much of the work done at the Keynsham and Bournville plants will be switched to the Polish company Wedel, which it acquired in 1998, Cadbury said, because labour and manufacturing costs would be much lower.

The announcement is particularly controversial because Cadbury has a long history of social engagement and community involvement, dating from the reformist attitudes of the Cadbury family, Quakers who founded the company in the 19th century. The Fry family, which merged their company with Cadbury in 1919, bringing the Keynsham operation into the business, came from a similar background.

This is yet another example of the way shareholders needs are put before that of the people who do a bloody good job for a company and are then treated like dirt for their efforts.

A company (which I shall not name here!) that I deal with through the NHS outsourced to Poland a few years ago and now we can't get spare parts for our patient beds with any sense of urgency, often waiting up to 6 MONTHS for anything to arrive!

KRAFT! Should change their name to Krafty.......cheeky gits.

To read the full story about this KRAFTY move, click HERE to visit the Independent Website.

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What is the difference between Tuna bought at Sainsburys and that bought in Iceland ?

£2.39 is the rather surprising answer!.

Having bought a four pack of Princes tuna chunks in Brine from Sainsburys the other day for £5.39, you can imagine my surprise when shortly afterwards we spied the Exact same product in the local Iceland store for...£3.00!.
bb
Now I don't mind shelling out a few quid extra when I shop at a local store such as SPAR or the CO-OP,I expect the prices to be slightly more than the local supermarket, but I must say that I was not a happy bunny when I realised the enormous wedge of my hard earned cash that Sainsburys expected me to part with for 4 tins of ruddy fish!


This was not an accident either, the identical produce had the same Best Before date and before you ask,No the Iceland offering was NOT on special offer.

I can only assume that the services of one Mr Jamie Oliver must be costing them a few quid, and so they have decided to pass the cost on to their poor customers..me included.

I will be checking the prices in Sainsbury's a little closer from now on,and, as their advert says "Try something new today" I will also be shopping for a lot more of my groceries in Iceland also.

This is the reply that I received today after I asked for an explanation of their pricing......

"Dear Andrew

Thanks for your email and for choosing to shop with us.  I'm sorry you are not happy about the price of some of our products.  I can understand you feel disappointed at this as you are a loyal Sainsbury's customer.

We’re committed to offering great quality food at fair prices which is sourced with integrity.  We regularly review our prices to make sure we offer value for money whilst remaining competitive and we work hard to negotiate great deals with our suppliers.  Although we try to keep our pricing as fair as possible sometime prices can go up as well as down.
There are lots of factors which can affect pricing, from rising costs of raw materials, to production and packaging and even transportation.  Whilst we try to absorb these increases for as long as possible, sometimes we eventually have to put the price of certain products up.  
We appraciate you taking the time to contact us about this, and look forward to seeing you again soon.


Kind regards
Caroline
Customer Manager"

So I guess this means that indeed I should "try something new today"and buy my groceries from other shops, because all I can gather from this "stock reply" email is that there really is no excuse for the price difference...unless of course Sainsbury's buy their tuna from another planet !....that may explain the cost!


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Indian Govt forgets their Leukaemia( ल्यूकेमिया ) hit sporting champion Somnath Marlo.

An international-level athlete’s dream run may come to an abrupt halt, thanks to empty promises and state apathy.

Somnath Marlo, a resident of Taherpur in Nadia district, has braved polio, leukaemia and poverty to win laurels in athletics at national and international meets.

In 2002, he struck gold in high jump at the Far East and South Pacific Games for the Disabled at Busan, South Korea. His latest feat was in September 2009, at the national sports meet for the physically challenged, where he won a gold in high jump.

The 27-year-old is currently undergoing treatment for chronic myeloid leukaemia, a cancer of the white blood cells, at a private hospital in the city.

“I had cleared 1.51 metres at the Busan meet,” recalled Marlo, whose father sells eggs at Taherpur railway station.

After Busan, Marlo received Rs 5 lakh from the then Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The Prime Minister’s Office also promised him a job. But that remained a promise.

Afflicted with polio since childhood, Marlo underwent training at the Sports Authority of India camp in Salt Lake from 2000 to 2006.

This guy deserve a medal for just having the commitment for his sport. To see the full story about Somnath's struggle click HERE to view the 24dunia.com website.

Good luck mate,hope you get the backing you need :-)

और भारत में .. अपने पाठकों के लिए


एक अंतरराष्ट्रीय स्तर के खिलाड़ी भाग एक सपना अचानक ठप पड़ जाने, खाली वादों और राज्य की उदासीनता के कारण हो सकता है.
, नादिया जिले में एक Taherpur के निवासी सोमनाथ Marlo है, पोलियो, ल्यूकीमिया और गरीबी braved को एथलेटिक्स में राष्ट्रीय और अंतरराष्ट्रीय स्तर पर प्रसिद्ध जीत मिलती है.

2002 में, वह बुसान, दक्षिण कोरिया में विकलांगों के लिए सुदूर पूर्व और दक्षिण प्रशांत खेलों में ऊंची कूद में स्वर्ण मारा. अपनी नवीनतम उपलब्धि सितम्बर 2009 में हुआ था, राष्ट्रीय खेल पर मिलने के लिए शारीरिक रूप से विकलांग है, जहां वह ऊंची कूद में स्वर्ण पदक जीता.

27 साल के इस समय है जीर्ण myeloid ल्यूकेमिया, सफेद रक्त कोशिकाओं के कैंसर का इलाज चल, शहर में एक निजी अस्पताल में.

"मैं मिलने बुसान में 1.51 मीटर को मंजूरी दे दी थी,", जिसके पिता Marlo उल्लेखनीय Taherpur रेलवे स्टेशन पर अंडे बेचता है.
बाद बुसान, Marlo तो प्रधानमंत्री अटल बिहारी वाजपेयी से मिले 5 लाख रु. प्रधानमंत्री कार्यालय ने भी उसे नौकरी का वादा किया. लेकिन यह वादा रहा.

बचपन से पोलियो से पीड़ित, Marlo साल्ट लेक में भारत शिविर का खेल प्राधिकरण में 2000 से 2006 तक प्रशिक्षण लिया था.

इस आदमी को अभी अपने खेल के लिए प्रतिबद्धता रखने के लिए एक पदक के लायक हो. को क्लिक करें सोमनाथ संघर्ष के बारे में पूरी कहानी देख यहां 24dunia.com वेबसाइट को देखने के लिए.

भाग्य दोस्त अच्छा है, आशा है कि तुम तुम :-) समर्थन की ज़रूरत

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NICE Appraisal Of Dasatinib And Nilotinib For Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has updated its draft guidance on the use of dasatinib (Sprycel,made by Bristol Myers-Squibb) and nilotinib (Tasigna,made by Novartis) for chronic myeloidleukaemia.


Following the previous public consultation and subsequent independent Appraisal Committee meeting on 13 January 2010, both NICE and the appraisal committee agreed to split the appraisal of dasatinib and nilotinib for chronic myeloid leukaemia into two separate appraisals.

To effectively appraise a new treatment, the Committee compares it to an existing one. In this case, high dose imatinib (glivec, 600 mg or 800 mg per day) has been identified as a comparator for dasatinib and nilotinib for people who are 'resistant' to imatinib (standard treatment with imatinib (400 mg per day) has stopped working), although it clearly cannot be a comparator for people who cannot tolerate imatinib. 


To read more click HERE to view the full report on the Medical News Today Website.

Rihanna asks Pepsi to Help with the Fight Against Leukaemia

Pop star Rihanna has vowed to help leukaemia sufferers after the six-year-old girl she attempted to save from the disease passed away last month (Jan10th 2010).

Little Jasmina Anema captured the Umbrella hitmaker's heart in 2008 after the youngster's desperate family appealed online for bone marrow donors.

The singer supported the public appeal, and kept in close contact with Jasmina, but was left "heartbroken" when the child passed away in hospital last month.

Now the singer has submitted a request for funding from bosses at beverage giant Pepsi, who have launched the Refresh Project, which hands out $20 million (£12.5 million) annually to good causes.

Rihanna wants part of the fund to go towards the  DKMS charity, which helps to try and find bone marrow donors for the victims of leukaemia.

To read the story in full please click HERE.

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Leukaemia Survivor Matthew set to tackle new challenge to help others

Leukaemia survivor Matthew Ashmore who has undergone two heart operations and battled back from pneumonia is now set to run the London Marathon to help others beat the disease.


36-year-old Matthew, who works as a sales assistant at the Morrisons store, on the Centrum 100 development, hopes to complete the gruelling 26-mile route with the Mr Men and Little Miss team to raise funds for the charity Children with Leukaemia.


To read the full story and to sponsor Matt, please click HERE to view the Burton Mail Website.




Well done Matthew, S2M wishes you good luck with your great challenge. After all you have been through mate, this should be just a walk in the park......or perhaps a run through the city :-)


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Ebay Fees.......you only need a degree in maths to work them out....

Having just listed an item on Ebay I decided to check what the fees involved in the advertisement would be.....and how I wish i had not bothered.

So here is a small maths test for you.

The item was listed at £300 on a "Buy it now" sale.

The cost of the advert to be put on Ebay was 0.40 pence.

OK so far ?

Now, use this table to tell me how much it will cost me in final value fees if the selling price was £299.......

£300.00 - £599.99

5.25% of the initial £29.99 (£1.57) + 3% of the initial £30.00 - £99.99 (£2.10) + 2.5% of the initial £100.00 - £199.99 (£2.50) +2% of the initial £200.00 - £299.99 (£2.00) + 1.5% of the remaining balance of the final selling price

Anyone got an answer yet ?


If you do....please can you tell me what it is :-)


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The car in front is a Toyota...because its brakes are faulty and its throttle is stuck open!.

The car manufacturer Toyota has been in the news a lot recently due to a spate of accidents (some sadly fatal) and near misses involving several of its models which it appears are having problems with their brakes and accelerators.

This started to make me wonder about just how over engineered and complex some of the "basic" systems now fitted to modern cars have become.

Gone are the days when a throttle was linked to the engine via a pedal linked to a cable and attatched to the carb , now they are  connected to a potentiometer in a black box, or some other weird and wonderful arrangement. Brakes,once upon a time,used to be directly connected to a piston which then (through hydraulic action achieved by the driver pressing a pedal) would apply pressure to pitons in the callipers and thus clamp the brake shoes/pads onto the disks/drums of the car. Not so now of course, now it all has to be done via a computer system to ensure "optimum performance".The question is, are car manufacturers just getting a little too clever for their own good, and are the public becoming "lab rats" to help with their research ?

As you are well aware, Scarlett (My Scirocco) is now almost 23 years old, and at this moment in time i am feeling so glad that she is not burdened with all the clutter and gizmo's that all modern cars seem to be.

I would say that given the choice of choosing a car to travel any great distance in right now, and given a choice of my old "trusty steed" or some all singing all dancing box of wires and chips set on four wheels, i know which ignition key I would be turning!.

Sometimes driving something with less is better than being let down by something with (apparently) so much more!.

Bonemarrow Drive for young Roman Cusick at Calverton 27th February.

Join for Joel in conjunction with the Anthony Nolan Trust are holding a Bonemarrow Drive.

Local boy Roman Cusick is only 3 years old and urgently needs a Bonemarrow Transplant

Calverton Miners Welfare,

Hollingwood Lane, Calverton, Notts, NG14 6NR

Time: 4PM to 8PM

If you are 18 to 40 years old please come along. You could be giving the gift of life. All that will be done is a quick mouth swab - there will be no blood taken.

Please.If you can help this young fella, come to this donor session.Thanks :-)

Spam,spam,spam and spam!. Liam Francis shows the TV chefs what REAL cooking is!

ARMY chef Liam Francis performed heroics for frontline troops when the Taliban shot down supplies — and left them with only SPAM to eat for six weeks.


Liam, a 26 year-old corporal, found himself with no fresh food — but hundreds of tins of the tinned pork and ham famously lampooned by Monty Python. His culinary skills were stretched to the limit as he cooked up a variety of dishes including sweet and sour Spam, Spam fritters, Spam carbonara, Spam stroganoff and stir-fried Spam.

Read more by clicking HERE to go to the Sun Website.

This stroy reminds me of when mysef and Glen attended the RAF Waddington Air Show in 2008. We had managed to convince TV drill instructor Richard "Nooky" Nauyokas to come along for the Sunday to help us raise cash for the S2M event, and we just so happened to be pitched right across the road
from a trailer promoting SPAM. We soon found out that they were giving away free samples of the product, and so we made a few trips along to to the wagon to fill our empty stomaches during the day.
Nooky asked why we always seemed to be munching spam everytime he saw us, and,after explaining the deal, he marched over to the stall.
"Look, it's that fella off of the telly" said one of the crew serving up the free spam portions, "hey mate" he said to Nooky, " how about you doing us a bit of PR to promote our stuff?".
Nooky looked at him for a moment, then he turned to the crowd that had gathered around him and without batting an eyelid shouted "Come here and get yer spam, it tastes like crap but it fills you up!"........he never got asked to advertise for them again for some reason :-).
Well done Liam. You really showed those chefs at "Ready Steady Cook" a thing or 2 about using your imagination mate :-).

P.S Wonder if the people who make SPAM will get Liam to do an Ad ?
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Pontin’s to fight blood cancers in 2010

The UK’s leading holiday entertainment company Pontin’s has pledged its support in the battle against blood cancers by naming Leukaemia Research as its charity partner for 2010.

To help the charity celebrate its 50th birthday in 2010, Pontin’s will invite its holidaymakers to add a £1 donation when booking their break. The company is also organising a number of fundraising events throughout the year at its five seaside resorts at Southport, Brean Sands, Camber Sands, Prestatyn and Pakefield. Bluecoats will even join Sir Ian Botham in April 2010 on different legs of his latest walk around the country for Leukaemia Research.


Recognising the strain treatment can put on patients and those close to them, Pontin’s also gave brave children an early Christmas present by inviting a number of families to its Pre -Christmas Dreamland last December.


While leukaemia is the most common childhood cancer, leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma can affect people of any age and Leukaemia Research is dedicated to finding better treatments and cures for these blood cancers.

Pontin’s is taking part in Leukaemia Research’s Big Five-0 Challenge, in which the charity is asking companies to help celebrate its 50th birthday in 2010 by fundraising. Leukaemia Research’s Chairman of Fundraising, Alastair Campbell is leading the Big Five-0 Challenge.


Alastair Campbell said: “It is never easy for charities to ask for money and it is certainly harder with the current economic situation. However, good causes do not go away with bad times, on the contrary their need becomes greater”.

Since Leukaemia Research was formed in 1960, huge advances have been made in the treatment of these blood cancers, especially in the area of childhood leukaemia where survival rates have gone from virtually zero in 1960 to over 80% today.

Graham Parr, Chairman at Pontin’s said: “: Families are really important to us as a traditional family holiday and entertainment company so we’re delighted to support Leukaemia Research’s commitment to keeping more families together through their research. We know all our guests and our Bluecoats will get behind us to raise as much as possible.”

Well done Pontins !.

P.S I must admit that I have a confession to make...I was a Pontins Bonny Baby Winner in 1968!.....Picture to follow.....

To visit the Pontins Site please click HERE.

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Study weighs benefits of transplants for leukaemia

FEBRUARY 1, 2010


LONDON (Reuters) - Leukaemia patients who have blood stem cell transplants survive just as long on average as those who undergo the more invasive procedure of having a bone marrow transplant, scientists said on Monday.

But patients with acute forms the blood cancer appear to do better if they have bone marrow as opposed to blood stem cell transplants, the scientists said, suggesting that for some the benefit of the complex treatment is greater in the long run.Bone marrow transplants involve the collection of stem cells from the bone marrow -- a complicated procedure in which the patient must have a general anaesthetic and surgery.

To read the full story please click HERE to go to the CureToday.com website.

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First successful use of expanded umbilical-cord blood units to treat leukaemia

Scientists at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have cleared a major technical hurdle to making umbilical-cord-blood transplants a more widely-used method for treating leukaemia and other blood cancers.

In a study published in the 17 January 2010 edition of Nature Medicine, Colleen Delaney, MD, and colleagues describe the first use of a method to vastly expand the number of stem/progenitor cells from a unit of cord blood in the laboratory that were then infused into patients resulting in successful and rapid engraftment.


The relatively small number of stem cells in cord blood units (about one-10th the number a patient receives from a conventional transplant) has been a reason that cord blood transplants take much longer to engraft than standard stem cell transplants from donors. The longer the engraftment takes, the higher the risk is that immunocompromised patients will acquire life-threatening infections because they have essentially no white blood cells to fight them.

To read the full story click HERE to view the Virtual Medical centre website.
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