The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has recommended monoclonal antibody erenumab for preventing migraine in its final draft guidance.
Erenumab is being sold under the brand name Aimovig by the Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis.
NICE’s draft guidance recommends erenumab for adults who have at least four migraine days each month and where at least three previous preventive treatments have failed.
The decision follows an appeal lodged against an earlier draft, with appeal panel asking NICE to consider the cost-effectiveness of erenumab against best supportive care in people with chronic migraine who had failed to benefit from the comparator drug (botulinum toxin) or when it is contra-indicated.
The agency said it has taken into account information provided by the company about additional quality of life benefits with erenumab treatment, alongside an improved commercial arrangement.
The drug which costs around £5,000 per patient per year at its list price will now be made available to the NHS at a discounted price.
The guidance suggests the drug in the population who had tried three or more prior treatments, which includes the people who had failed to benefit from botulinum toxin or when it is contra-indicated.
The committee concluded that erenumab could be recommended as an option for people with episodic and chronic migraine. NICE expects to publish final guidance in January 2021.
