The Ovarian Cancer Foundation New Zealand (OCFNZ) is incredibly pleased to hear that bevacizumab will likely be funded for women with newly diagnosed ovarian cancer in the near future. In September, Pharmac made a Request For Tender to suppliers, which is an important step towards funding in New Zealand. While the funding outcome is not guaranteed, this is encouraging progress towards improved ovarian cancer treatment.
Bevacizumab is a targeted therapy for cancer treatment that works by inhibiting the growth of blood vessels supplying tumours restricting their growth and spread. Sometimes referred to by its brand name, Avastin, bevacizumab is used in the treatment of multiple cancers, including ovarian cancer.
This progress follows concerted advocacy efforts by OCFNZ. A key milestone took place in 2021 when our advocacy work led to the reversal of Pharmac’s 2021 decision to decline the application for bevacizumab funding. Pharmac’s Pharmacology and Therapeutics Advisory Committee (PTAC) re-evaluated bevacizumab for ovarian cancer and recommended it be funded for high-risk advanced epithelial ovarian cancer with medium priority.
In June 2024, the Government announced a funding boost of $604 million over four years to cover up to 54 new drugs across a range of diseases and illnesses. OCFNZ has been campaigning for increased Pharmac funding, in collaboration with other organisations, including the alliance of cancer NGO’s, CANGO and Patient Voice Aotearoa for many years. This additional funding has enabled Pharmac to look at funding additional medicines, including bevacizumab for ovarian cancer.
Unfortunately, despite this positive development for newly diagnosed women, Pharmac also re-proposed declining bevacizumab for recurrent ovarian cancer late last year. We sought advice from international and local experts and put forward a strong submission in February, highlighting the benefits of bevacizumab, particularly in platinum-resistant high-grade serous and rare ovarian cancers, that often do not respond as well to currently funded chemotherapies. Despite our best efforts, Pharmac recently advised us that our submission was unsuccessful, and the application for bevacizumab in recurrent ovarian cancer has been declined.
We understand this news will also be incredibly disappointing for many in our ovarian cancer community. While bevacizumab has been funded for ovarian cancer treatment in Australia and the United Kingdom for many years, it has remained unfunded in New Zealand despite the funding application being made in 2013. Many women with recurrent ovarian cancer rely on private insurance, pay tens of thousands out of pocket, or go without a treatment that could significantly impact their lives. We remain committed to working with oncology and looking for opportunities to push bevacizumab funding forward in recurrence.
This situation exemplifies the challenges and difficulties of the New Zealand pharmaceutical environment, which remains one of the least funded in the OECD. Chronic underfunding has led to significant gaps in treatment access for women with ovarian cancer compared to Australia. Despite the likely funding of bevacizumab for newly diagnosed women, there is still a long way to go.
It also highlights the value and importance of our advocacy for ovarian cancer. Although we are saddened that it won’t be funded for recurrence at this stage, we take pride that we were able to overturn the initial decline decision. This occurred in just 13 of the 93 medications in Pharmac’s initial proposal, the rest were declined outright.
If Pharmac can reach an agreement with suppliers, it’s likely that bevacizumab will be funded for newly diagnosed ovarian cancer from April 2025, something that is much-needed and long-overdue.
OCFNZ would like to acknowledge the support of the women in our ovarian cancer community, and their families, who have bravely shared their stories as part of these advocacy efforts. This progress would not have been possible without their support, and those of our donors and fundraisers.
More information
Bevacizumab's application process timeline
2013 – Application for funding of bevacizumab was made to Pharmac.
2021 – Pharmac proposes declining the funding application for bevacizumab for ovarian cancer.
2022 – OCFNZ makes a submission opposing the decision to decline funding, resulting in Pharmac progressing the application to be reassessed by the PTAC Committee.
May 2022 – The Pharmacology and Therapeutics Advisory Committee (PTAC) reassessed the funding application and recommended that bevacizumab be approved for newly diagnosed high-risk advanced ovarian cancer with medium priority, but declined for use in recurrence.
December 2023 – Pharmac accepts PTAC’s recommendation and announces its intention to decline funding for bevacizumab in recurrent ovarian cancer.
February 2024 – OCFNZ makes another submission, opposing the decision to decline funding of bevacizumab in second-line treatment, supported by experts from America, Europe and New Zealand.
March 2024 – The Associate Minister of Health (Pharmac) Hon. David Seymour writes to OCFNZ to advise that bevacizumab has been listed in their options for investment list, for newly diagnosed ovarian cancer.
May 2024 – The government budget is announced, with no new funding for cancer drugs.
June 2024 – OCFNZ worked with other charities and patient advocates to write a letter to the government calling on them to keep their election policy commitment and increase Pharmac funding. The government announces a $604 million funding boost for Pharmac to fund more drugs for a range of diseases and illnesses. Early indications show that an ovarian cancer drug could be included in this funding.
July 2024 – Pharmac confirms they have declined bevacizumab for use in second-line (recurrent) treatment of ovarian cancer.
September 2024 – Pharmac announces they have opened a tender process for the supply of bevacizumab, for a number of cancers, including newly diagnosed ovarian cancer.
