23 December 2024
New listing of life-saving nuclear medicine for men with prostate cancer
Life-saving Lutetium PSMA imaging and therapy will be listed on Australia’s Medicare Benefits Schedule from July 1 next year, saving families hundreds of thousands of dollars to access the treatment.
The listing follows three years of advocacy by Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia.
PCFA’s Chairman, Adjunct Associate Professor Steve Callister AM, welcomed the news.
“The funding has been confirmed in the 2024-25 Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook, with allocation of $72m over four years to treat men with metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer, and $37.2m per year ongoing, enabling the treatment of 1,500 eligible men per year by 2028.
“Around 3,900 Australian men die from prostate cancer each year and up to 80 per cent of these men stand to experience significant and life-extending clinical benefits from treatment with Lutetium PSMA therapy.
“Research funded by PCFA has found that it is significantly superior to second line chemotherapy in terms of treatment response, pain control, and quality of life in men with metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer, improving overall survival and minimising the harmful side effects commonly experienced as a result of other treatments.”
Without listing of Lutetium Imaging and Therapy, the treatment can cost up to $35,000 per dose, requiring six or more rounds of treatment for a typical patient.
PCFA’s CEO Anne Savage hailed the move a game-changer.
“We commend the Government for responding to our call and will continue to advocate for expanded access to this and other nuclear medicines for men with prostate cancer.
“The groundbreaking therapy uses a radioactive tracer combined with a radiopharmaceutical to target prostate cancer cells that have spread around the body, eliminating cancer cells while minimising damage to surrounding tissue and organs.
“This decision aligns our health system with the very latest evidence, honouring our commitment to Australian men and families impacted by prostate cancer.
“We now set our sights on continuing research into the efficacy of Lutetium therapy and other emerging nuclear medicines for men with intermediate and high-risk prostate cancers, towards our goal of zero deaths.”
Adjunct Associate Professor Callister said research into life-saving new nuclear medicines was an investment priority for PCFA’s Prostate Cancer Future Fund.
“We have made rapid gains in prostate cancer diagnosis and treatment over the past five years, significantly improving treatment outcomes for thousands of Australian men.
“We must keep up the pace of work to ensure all Australian men have access to timely and effective treatments, backed by the very latest findings from clinical trials and research.
“PCFA‘s Prostate Cancer Future Fund will be key to our success, transforming philanthropic and community donations into tangible near-term outcomes for Australia men impacted by prostate cancer.”
PCFA’s Chief of Mission and Head of Research, Professor Jeff Dunn AO, said research findings were being translated into practice faster than ever before.
“Over recent years we’ve made great gains in developing targeted therapies that allow us to pinpoint cancerous cells that have escaped the prostate, slowing and stopping the spread of tumours before they take hold.
“These therapies piggyback on a protein called Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen, which is often present on the surface of prostate cancer cells, particularly in the later stages of the disease.”
This knowledge has paved the way for new nuclear medicines using radiopharmaceuticals that are specifically designed to bind to PSMA on the surface of cancer cells.
“For men with advanced prostate cancer, these discoveries can’t come soon enough,” Professor Dunn says.
“While 98 per cent of men with early-stage prostate cancer will survive at least five years, for men with late-stage prostate cancer, five-year relative survival decreases to just 36 per cent.
“This listing of Lutetium Imaging and Therapy is a great leap forward for prostate cancer treatment in Australia.”
Donate via www.pcfa.org.au/donate or call 1800 22 00 99 for more information.
