Today the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has announced the decision not to recommend pembrolizumab (Keytruda) with chemotherapy, with or without bevacizumab, for treating platinum-resistant recurrent ovarian cancer that expresses PD-L1 after 1 or 2 lines of treatments.
Anyone who has already started the treatment will continue until they and their clinicians decide it is appropriate to stop.
NICE has decided that although there is evidence from clinical trials that pembrolizumab increases how long people have before their cancer gets worse and how long they live, it was viewed as not cost-effective.
This decision covers access in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Scotland has a different process.
Why is this important
When ovarian cancer returns within six months of the last platinum-based treatment (such as carboplatin or cisplatin), it is classed as platinum- resistant. In these cases, effective treatment options are extremely limited.
NICE’s decision means that, for now, women with platinum-resistant disease will continue to face limited treatment options. This is hugely disappointing news.
Today’s decision is a devastating setback for women with platinum- resistant ovarian cancer who have very few treatment options. We urgently need new and better treatment options, and denying access to a new treatment with the potential to improve outcomes is simply unacceptable. We strongly urge the Department of Health and Social Care and MSD to come to an agreement on access. Women with ovarian cancer cannot afford to wait; every day without progress is a day lost in the fight against this devastating disease."
Following my own recurrence in 2026 this decision is deeply disappointing. For women with ovarian cancer, access to innovative treatments can offer hope and more time with loved ones, which is invaluable. We cannot afford to be left behind, and we ask that patient need remains at the heart of every decision."
What is Target Ovarian Cancer doing?
Today we have launched our campaign calling for this decision to be reconsidered. We have written to the Secretary of State for Health and to MSD, the manufacturer of pembrolizumab, urging them to resume negotiations on access without delay.
Alongside this, we have published an open letter to both parties calling for urgent action, and anyone can add their name.
We will also work closely with our MP champions in Parliament to ensure this issue receives the attention it deserves and to press for a solution that delivers fair access to treatment.
