Update on access challenges in England for Dupilumab to treat severe chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP)
NICE, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, mandated that the Dupilumab be made available to eligible eligible* NHS patients with severe CRSwNP within 90 days of it being approved. That 90 days has now passed. The drug is being funded centrally by NHS England. This means that all hospitals across England should now be able to prescribe the drug to eligible patients. To look at this a different way, all eligible NHS patients in England should have access to the drug.
*Dupilumab, as an add-on to intranasal corticosteroids, can be used as an option to treat severe chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps in adults if:
• the condition is not controlled well enough by systemic corticosteroids or sinus surgery, and
• they have had at least 1 sinus surgery, and
• the 22-item sinonasal outcomes test (SNOT-22) score is at least 50.
We would encourage anyone with severe CRSwNP who believes that they are eligible for Dupilumab to speak with their ENT consultant about how they can be prescribed it. Anyone not currently under the care of an ENT consultant who believes they meet the eligibility criteria can speak to their GP about getting a referral to a rhinologist – an Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) consultant who specialises in diseases of the nose and sinuses.
Everyone who is eligible for NICE-approved treatments should be able to access them, regardless of where they live:
We would like to hear from any eligible patients who are told that they are unable to be given the drug, and the reasons why. Please contact us using this link: info@smelltaste.org.uk.
