NHS Introduces One-Minute Cancer Jab for 14,000 Patients
Pembrolizumab injection reduces treatment time by up to 90%, freeing up NHS appointments
Quick Look
- NHS is rolling out a one-minute pembrolizumab (Keytruda) injection for cancer patients, potentially helping 14,000 people annually in England.
- The immunotherapy treatment reduces infusion time by up to 90% and staff preparation time by 44%, freeing up vital NHS appointments.
- The jab works against lung, breast, head and neck, and cervical cancers, and is administered every three or six weeks depending on cancer type.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
Pembrolizumab is an immunotherapy drug that works by blocking the PD-1 protein, which acts as a brake on immune responses. Previously, patients needed to spend long periods on IV drips to receive the treatment, requiring hospital pharmacy teams to prepare the drug in sterile conditions.
The NHS is introducing a one-minute jab that could help tens of thousands of cancer patients. Around 14,000 people in England start using pembrolizumab (Keytruda) via a drip each year, and most are now expected to move to the immunotherapy injection to treat more than a dozen types of the disease.
Until now, patients have had to spend long periods on drips to get the drug into their system. But the time needed for treatment can be cut by up to 90% using the new injectable form. The jab works by telling the body's immune system to recognise and kill cancer cells. And it is powerful against several types of the disease, including lung, breast, head and neck, and cervical cancer.
The treatment is given every three weeks as a one-minute injection or every six weeks as a two-minute injection, depending on what type that people have. Health officials have said the innovation "will help free up vital appointments for NHS teams to treat more people and continue to bring down waiting times".
Pembrolizumab, made by MSD, works by blocking a protein called PD-1, which acts as a brake on immune responses, releasing the immune system to recognise and attack cancer cells. At the moment, hospital pharmacy teams need to carefully prepare the drug in intravenous bags under sterile conditions, which can be time-consuming for NHS staff. The ready-to-use injection reduces the amount of time that workers spend on preparing treatment by 44%, MSD analysis suggests.
One of the first patients to receive the new injection on the NHS was 89-year-old Shirley Xerxes, from St Albans in Hertfordshire. Ms Xerxes, who was treated for bowel cancer at the Mount Vernon Cancer Centre, part of East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust, said: "Having the injection has been great and the nurse was so good, so kind."
"I just had it in my tummy. But it's not as quick as a COVID jab. It takes a couple of minutes."
Professor Peter Johnson, NHS national clinical director for cancer, said: "This immunotherapy offers a lifeline for thousands of patients." He added that "it's fantastic that this new rapid jab can now take just a minute to deliver - meaning patients can get back to living their lives rather than spending hours in a hospital chair".
Open Questions
- Will the injection be available to all NHS trusts immediately?
- Are there any side effects specific to the injection form?
- What is the cost difference between the injection and drip?
