Nivolumab and pembrolizumab: coverage that arrived in stages

What it is

Nivolumab and pembrolizumab are two immunotherapies used in several types of cancer and, in Uruguay, were for years the drugs most requested in court claims, according to Teledoce. On 4 October 2019 that channel reported —citing the newspaper El País— that the then general director of the National Resources Fund, Alicia Ferreira, announced at the War on Cancer Latin America forum in Mexico City that Uruguay planned to add both medicines: melanoma would be the first target condition, with possible later expansion to lung cancer.

What is questioned

In that same report Teledoce noted that "the cost of both medications is around 13 thousand dollars a month" and that "in the last two years close to a hundred lawsuits were filed to request this medication". Covering them in stages —melanoma first, lung later— was a health-policy decision: for the indications left out, the door remained the amparo. Only on 10 September 2024 did the government announce the update of FNR treatments for thirteen cancer conditions, including lung, kidney and melanoma, with a fall of around 50% in prices, according to Presidencia and Montevideo Portal, which listed nivolumab and pembrolizumab among the drugs covered. In the interval, the Ministry of Economy and Finance reported that in 2023 alone the State paid US$99 million on injunctions for high-priced medicines and techniques.

Why it matters to you

When the State covers a drug for only one indication, it defines who receives treatment on prescription and who must obtain it through a lawsuit. With a monthly cost of the order of US$13,000 reported in 2019, that line is the difference between free treatment and a court claim not everyone can start.

Where it stands