Women with advanced cancer get fresh hope as new treatment approved on NHS

More than 2,100 patients will be able to access Keytruda each year

Thousands of women battling an advanced form of womb cancer have been offered renewed hope after a new treatment was approved for widespread use on the NHS.

Currently, just 15 per cent of women diagnosed with advanced (stage four) endometrial cancer – which typically originates in the lining of the womb – survive for five years.

The treatment, known as pembrolizumab, has been shown to slow cancer growth and significantly improve survival odds, health officials said.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) estimates that approximately 2,100 women across England will benefit from the therapy each year.

Nice hailed its approval as a "major step forward" in the treatment of the cancer.

The treatment, also known as Keytruda and made by Merck Sharp and Dohme, is an immunotherapy drug and is delivered in a drip alongside chemotherapy drugs carboplatin and paclitaxel.

Pembrolizumab is also known as Keytruda (Alamy/PA)

It can be given for up to two years.

Nice said that clinical trials show the combination of treatments reduced the risk of death by 26 per cent compared to chemotherapy alone.

The treatments can also slow down cancer progression, it added.

“For people with advanced endometrial cancer, this innovative combination offers a powerful new treatment option,” said Helen Knight, director of medicines evaluation at Nice.

“It marks a major step forward, and we’re pleased to recommend it as part of our commitment to getting the best care to people, fast, while ensuring value for the taxpayer.”

Nearly 10,000 women in the UK are diagnosed with womb cancer each year (Getty Images)

Around 9,700 women are diagnosed with endometrial cancer each year, Nice said, making it the most common gynaecological cancer in the UK.

Helen Hyndman, lead nurse at the charity Eve Appeal’s information service Ask Eve, said: “Primary advanced or recurrent womb (endometrial) cancer has a huge impact on the quality of life for those diagnosed.

“It is great news that this new treatment has been approved.

“It will offer hope, a better quality of life and improve outcomes for those affected.”

Professor Peter Johnson, NHS England’s national clinical director for cancer, said: “Getting this treatment to many more NHS patients as quickly as possible will help thousands of women live longer, allowing them to spend more time with loved ones and give them a better quality of life.

“Thanks to the NHS’s Cancer Drugs Fund, it is now being fast-tracked into routine use, with treatment available to more patients from today.”