• Spend on cancer per patient in England 2006 - 2007

£9,397

Compare this with other PCTs: highest amount spent was £17,028, lowest was £5,182, and average PCT spend per cancer patient was £8,437.

Exceptional funding for cancer treatment

The following information was requested from the PCT in 2008 under the Freedom of Information Act.

Written protocols
The PCT has Non-Contract Treatment arrangements for the consideration of individual requests for funding of treatments not routinely commissioned.

Cancer treatments funded by PCT following exceptional requests
Since 01 April 2006, three patients have had their requests approved.  The treatments were:

• Sunitinib
• Trabectedin
• Erlotinib

Cancer treatments not funded by PCT following exceptional requests
Since 01 April 2006, 12 requests have not been approved.  The treatments were:

• Sunitinib x 2 (no NICE guidance yet available)
• Bortezomib x 1 (outside the criteria in the NICE guidance for multiple myeloma)
• Pemetrexed x 3 (outside the licence/criteria in the NICE guidance)
• Topotecan x 1 (no NICE guidance for indication requested)
• Erlotinib x 5 (NICE guidance now at FAD stage but not recommended for non-small cell lung cancer)