New form of asthma treatment approved for use on NHS

A new severe asthma treatment, Reslizumab, has been recommended for use on the NHS by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

Reslizumab is a monoclonal antibody treatment that has been designed specifically for patients suffering with a specific type of asthma, eosinophilic asthma. This severe form of the disease involves inflammation of a patient’s airways that is linked to the eosinophils — a type of white blood cell.

Patients with severe asthma do not respond to conventional inhalers and their struggle for breath can be debilitating for daily life, even leading to death. With limited treatment options, most patients with this form of asthma rely on high-dose steroids to try to control symptoms. However, these treatments can have other long-term health effects such as diabetes and osteoporosis.

“Reslizumab has the potential to dramatically improve the quality of life for some people living with severe asthma and we are delighted that it has been recommended for use on the NHS,” explained Kay Boycott, chief executive of Asthma UK. “New monoclonal antibody treatments, which have shown success in clinical trials are likely to be effective in treating around 30-40% of those living with severe asthma, so it is imperative that they are made available.

“While today’s news is an encouraging step forward, it’s important to note that these treatments will only benefit a certain group of people. There remain many thousands more for whom no effective treatments are available. More research is needed so that in the future all people with severe asthma will have an effective treatment option.”