UK pays least for cancer drugs than other EU countries

Out of 16 countries in Europe, the U.K. pays least to cancer drug manufacturers, reported The Lancet Oncology.

BBC reported that Germany, Switzerland, and Sweden pays the most for the cancer drugs, while Portugal and Spain pays lesser compared to most. However, the country that pays the least is the U.K., which pharmaceutical industry claims was getting a fair deal. The researchers compared 31 cancer drugs in 18 different high-income countries that include Greece, France, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Portugal, and the UK.

The prices came from the Pharma Price Information service in Austria, which records the prices manufacturers charge per unit.

According to City A.M., some governments pay as much as 388 percent higher compared to other countries. Lead author Sabine Vogler said that the confidentiality in agreements is the main reason why it is difficult to make prices equal. "Public [organisations] in Germany are paying 223 per cent more in terms of official prices for some treatments than those in Greece," said Volger.

Pharma Times wrote the new research also reveals the high prices of cancer drugs in Europe. According to the study, none of the drugs reviewed were cheaper than 10 euro.

Twenty three percent were priced 1,000 euro and up. Four drugs are priced between €250 and €500, while two of the drugs are under the price range between €500 and €1000.

There are some drugs that are twice as expensive compared to others. The leukemia and skin cancer treatment interferon alfa 2b has a price twice as expensive than others. The official list may be openly available for this study, but some discounts negotiated in various countries stayed confidential.

"Some high-income countries have managed to barter the manufacturers down to lower prices, but these agreements, including the agreed prices, are confidential," said Volger.

"Although these agreements ensure patient access to new drugs, other countries risk overpaying when setting drug prices through the common practice of external price referencing, or international price comparison, because they can only use the official undiscounted prices as a benchmark."

She said the industry doesn't want to provide discount information openly, which could have revealed how other countries are overpaying for their cancer treatment.