This follows and is on the same basis as the draft final guidance issued by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) on 10th July.
This advice from the SMC means that people with Crohn’s Disease will have access to a vital additional treatment option wherever they live in the UK. The importance of this cannot be underestimated for those who are running out of options.
Helen Terry, Director of Policy, Public Affairs and Research
Crohn's and Colitis UK
What has the SMC advised?
The SMC has accepted vedolizumab (brand name: Entyvio) for restricted use for the treatment of adults with moderately to severely active Crohn’s disease who have had an inadequate response with, lost response to, or were intolerant to either infliximab or adalimumab.
Treatment should be reassessed at least every 12 months to determine whether ongoing treatment is still clinically appropriate. For people in complete remission at 12 months, prescribers should consider stopping vedolizumab, resuming treatment if there is a relapse.
This advice does not override the individual responsibility of health professionals to make decisions in the exercise of their clinical judgment in consultation with the patient and/or guardian or carer.
What is vedolizumab?
Vedolizumab is a “biological” drug which is made from natural sources – similar to infliximab and adalimumab. However, it works in a different way to infliximab and adalimumab so it represents a new ‘class’ of drug in IBD. Infliximab and adalimumab are known as ‘anti-TNFs’ because they target a protein in the body called TNF-alpha. Vedolizumab works in a different way to these drugs because it stops the excessive movement of white blood cells to the gut. This helps to reduce the harmful inflammatory response that contributes to bowel damage in IBD. Current data indicates that vedolizumab can be effective for both Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn’s Disease.
For more information on drug treatments contact our Information Service.
