A treatment for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma, the most common type of primary liver cancer, is to be covered by National Health Insurance (NHI) from Tuesday next week, the National Health Insurance Administration said yesterday.
Medical Review and Pharmaceutical Benefits Division head Huang Yu-wen (黃育文) said the policy covering atezolizumab plus bevacizumab combination therapy is expected to benefit 2,072 people with advanced liver cancer, allowing them to save about NT$3 million (US$95,688) in annual medical expenses.
In 2019, the NHI included three types of immune checkpoint inhibitors — nivolumab, pembrolizumab and atezolizumab — for the treatment of eight types of cancers, including liver cancer.
Photo: CNA
However, immunotherapy for liver cancer was removed from the list the following year, as NHI funding is limited and studies at the time suggested that its efficacy was not significantly better than targeted therapy, Huang said.
As more studies were conducted and clinical data collected, some countries approved the combination of atezolizumab, an immunotherapy drug, with bevacizumab, a targeted therapy drug, as the standard of care for first-line systemic therapy for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma, she said.
A study published last year showed that the median overall survival was 5.8 months longer in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma treated with atezolizumab plus bevacizumab than those treated with sorafenib, a targeted therapy drug, she said.
Huang said that as the combination therapy has been adopted as the standard first-line therapy for treating advanced hepatocellular carcinoma in clinical treatment guidelines, and considering the clinical evidence and benefits to people with liver cancer, the Pharmaceutical Benefit and Reimbursement Scheme Joint Committee on June 15 approved the inclusion of the treatment in the NHI system.
Three batches of banana sauce imported from the Philippines were intercepted at the border after they were found to contain the banned industrial dye Orange G, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. From today through Sept. 2 next year, all seasoning sauces from the Philippines are to be subject to the FDA’s strictest border inspection, meaning 100 percent testing for illegal dyes before entry is allowed, it said in a statement. Orange G is an industrial coloring agent that is not permitted for food use in Taiwan or internationally, said Cheng Wei-chih (鄭維智), head of the FDA’s Northern Center for
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A total lunar eclipse, an astronomical event often referred to as a “blood moon,” would be visible to sky watchers in Taiwan starting just before midnight on Sunday night, the Taipei Astronomical Museum said. The phenomenon is also called “blood moon” due to the reddish-orange hue it takes on as the Earth passes directly between the sun and the moon, completely blocking direct sunlight from reaching the lunar surface. The only light is refracted by the Earth’s atmosphere, and its red wavelengths are bent toward the moon, illuminating it in a dramatic crimson light. Describing the event as the most important astronomical phenomenon
UNDER PRESSURE: The report cited numerous events that have happened this year to show increased coercion from China, such as military drills and legal threats The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) aims to reinforce its “one China” principle and the idea that Taiwan belongs to the People’s Republic of China by hosting celebratory events this year for the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, the “retrocession” of Taiwan and the establishment of the UN, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said in its latest report to the Legislative Yuan. Taking advantage of the significant anniversaries, Chinese officials are attempting to assert China’s sovereignty over Taiwan through interviews with international news media and cross-strait exchange events, the report said. Beijing intends to reinforce its “one China” principle
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