Anthony Byrne (Holt, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

I rise with pleasure to support the motion before the House that was moved by the member for Parramatta. I do so having met two very brave people that are fighting the ravages of mesothelioma and also having heard of their hopes and aspirations as to this treatment using Alimta in conjunction with Cisplatin and for Alimta, in particular, to be listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. We have heard during the discussion in this place from people who do not have experience of suffering mesothelioma about the process through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee. In my view, the reason this motion has come before the House is the great measure of concern of those that advocate on behalf of those with mesothelioma who are seeking recourse to this treatment. On the three previous occasions when they believe that a justifiable case has been put to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee for the listing of this particular drug, this drug has not been listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. That has indeed caused them a great measure of concern.

The fact is that the advisory groups that act on behalf of those that are experiencing the ravages of mesothelioma—and I would like to mention the Asbestos Diseases Society of Victoria and its director, Leigh Hubbard—have a great deal of concern about where this is going. There is no certainty as to this particular matter being considered by the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee. There has been some discussion about the cost and about the fact that we cannot bring every new-generation drug onto the market, however much hope the drug itself might offer to those that are experiencing the difficulties of fighting for their life. It is interesting that that argument has been put because that was the same argument that was put for those that were not strongly supportive of Herceptin being listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. In fact, I can recall—and there is an eerie similarity here between those that are now advocating for Alimta to be listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme and those that were advocating for Herceptin—very similar arguments where you would have women who had HER2 breast cancer and their treatment would cost not between the $15,000 and $20,000 that has been proposed for Alimta but between $65,000 and $90,000. In the case of Herceptin it was a life-saving treatment but in the case of Alimta it is a treatment that, as early studies are indicating, can prolong life expectancy and—very importantly for those that are fighting for their lives, literally fighting to breathe—ease suffering and offer a greater degree of optimism as to the capacity to cope with life.

Particularly when we are talking about the costs, and given the cost of treatment with Alimta is between $15,000 and $20,000, if you extrapolate them out—given the number of people that are projected to need access to this particular drug—we would be talking, if it were to be listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, about $33 million over five years. I am really struggling, as I stand in this House, to understand that we have a $17 billion cash surplus on one hand and on the other we are having an argument about a $33 million amount of money to be spent over five years, particularly when we are seeing campaigns advertising Work Choices legislation, that has not even been brought into the House, at a cost of $50 million.

How can anyone sustain such an argument particularly when you have countries that have in fact listed for reimbursement Alimta for the treatment of mesothelioma? These are countries such as Japan, Korea, Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and, most recently, the UK. All of these countries have referred to studies which have been before the PBAC, such as the one that I now hold, which is a phase 3 study of pemetrexed in combination with Cisplatin versus Cisplatin alone. This is from eminent leaders in the field and it proves that this treatment works. So we are talking about $33 million over a five-year period of time and we are asking that this drug be listed by the PBAC not only to potentially prolong people’s lives but also to ease their suffering. If we call ourselves a civilised society and if we call ourselves a community that cares about people, we would list this drug. (Time expired)

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