BRISBANE’S Catholic Justice and Peace Commission has joined with members of Victoria Point Parish, south of Brisbane, to lobby the Federal Government to approve a breast cancer treatment for listing on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.
The parishioners, including one woman who has breast cancer, asked the commission to help them to write to Health Minister Tony Abbott and local members of parliament about herceptin, which has been found to be beneficial in the treatment of some women with certain forms of early stage breast cancer.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) gave approval in April for the use of herceptin in certain cases and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) recommended listing of the drug on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme recently.
Herceptin treatment costs about $50,000 a year.
Mr Abbott said the Government would make a decision on the PBAC recommendation as soon as possible.
Catholic Justice and Peace Commission executive officer Peter Arndt said many women who would benefit from treatment with herceptin could not afford it.
The commission has prepared a briefing paper with sample letters to send to the Health Minister and other MPs.
It is available on the commission’s Web site at http://www.uq.net.au/cjpc/
