The Taiwan Alliance of Patients’ Organizations held a forum on recent trends in precision medicine and innovative health care, which saw participation by patient groups including the Hope Foundation for Cancer Care as well as medical professionals.

Hope Foundation Chairman Wang Cheng-hsu said that due to the constraints of the National Health Insurance (NHI) global budget, access to immunotherapy has been limited while clinical practice has strayed away from internationally established guidelines. Currently, a significant portion of patients undergoing immunotherapy are in the latter stages of disease progression, resulting in lower-than-expected efficacy. Therefore, the NHI should consider both patients’ health and the financial impacts of funding immunotherapy to enable patients to access the treatment they need, Chairman Wang said. Formosa Cancer Foundation Vice President Tsai Li-chuan urged the National Health Insurance Administration to expand eligibility of immunotherapy to improve patient access, treatment efficacy and quality of life. 

Taiwan Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer President Chang Wen-cheng said that treatment is trending towards combination therapy, comprised of immunotherapy, targeted therapy and chemotherapy, which have shown a chance of raising patients’ response to treatment by around 10 to 30 percent, as well as halving the risks of death. In neighboring Japan and South Korea, genetic testing has been promoted as a part of national policy, and that Taiwan should also include combination therapy and genetic testing for reimbursement, President Chang said.

Civil society groups have also urged the government to follow the example set by the UK and set up a cancer drug fund to tap into additional funding sources to expedite reimbursement of innovative cancer treatments. The groups said that the scheme will not only improve patient access but also aid in improving the sustainability of the NHI.

[2022-5-20/CTWANT]