New drug offers hope for those battling arthritis

Northland arthritis sufferers are celebrating a decision to fund an expensive new drug, saying it  could give them a new lease on life.
The new drug - which costs more than $20,000 a year - has been subsidised in Australia and the United Kingdom for years but until now was available in New Zealand only for a few types of arthritis.
People who missed out because they had the "wrong kind" of arthritis said the funding rules were discriminatory and unfair.  However, from August 1, the new drug - sold under the brand name Humira - will be subsidised for a much wider range of conditions.
Lesley Armstrong-Jennings, who runs an online retailing business from her home in Ngunguru, has suffered from arthritis for  five years. Pain has spread to all her joints - especially her shoulders, hips and feet - and at times she has difficulty walking, not to mention keeping up her job or looking after four children, including 12-year-old triplets.
"It got to the stage where I had difficulty dressing myself, which was very demeaning," she said. The worst thing was not being able to do as much with her children as she wanted.
"I can't play a game of cricket with them on the beach. The kids and my husband suffer because they see me suffering, and there's nothing they can do about it."
But what used to really upset her was that she couldn't get the new drugs her specialist said could help because she had the wrong kind of arthritis.
Until this month Humira was Government-funded only for juvenile arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
Mrs Armstrong-Jennings, however, has the similar but less-common psoriatic arthritis (PsA). She is already taking the maximum dose of methotrexate, an older drug with unpleasant side-effects also used in chemotherapy. Her specialist had told her there was nothing more he could do. "That was devastating," she said.
Now the 49-year-old is "guardedly optimistic" she'll meet the criteria to try Humira in the next few weeks.
"What I've heard from people overseas is that the effects can be quite miraculous. People have had an overnight reduction in swelling and pain. One lady is able to walk after being confined to a wheelchair for years."
Mrs Armstrong-Jennings hopes that she, too, can soon be more active.
"I'm not planning any marathons yet, but I'm so grateful it's available. I want to be in true remission from this disease. I know there's a chance and I'm going to go for it."
Arthritis New Zealand chief executive Sandra Kirby said she was delighted the drug was now funded for a wider range of conditions, removing a "shocking disparity" in the way people with different kinds of arthritis had been treated.
"It's something we've fought long and hard for. It does offer hope for people who have had little," Ms Kirby said.
While the new drug was expensive, it was highly effective and, unlike older drugs, reduced joint damage rather than just eased symptoms.
Making the drug more available made economic sense because more people would be able to keep working,  and hospital stays and the need for home help would be cut.
Arthritis New Zealand was still keen to see a second biologic drug funded for people who did not respond to Humira, she said.
Health Minister Tony Ryall told the Advocate there had been problems with "small numbers of people getting access to some types of high-cost drugs".
The Government was planning to appoint a panel, which would include community groups such as Arthritis New Zealand, to look into ways of improving access to high-cost, highly specialised medicines.
Mr Ryall said the Government had made a pre-election promise to boost Pharmac's funding and make more subsidised medicines available.
* The author is a member of Arthritis New Zealand.