2 February 2012 - The UK National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) said on Wednesday it had issued a new draft guidance not recommending the use of Janssen's Zytiga (abiraterone) because of its high price.

The guidance does not recommend the use of the drug in combination with prednisone or prednisolone for the treatment of castration-resistant metastatic prostate cancer that has progressed on or after docetaxel-containing therapy.

Abiraterone is a drug that could potentially extend life by more than three months, compared with placebo, said Sir Andrew Dillon, chief executive of NICE, adding that NICE is disappointed not to be able to recommend it for use on the NHS.

However, it is an expensive drug and the independent advisory committee that made this decision did not feel the drug provided enough benefit to patients to justify the price the NHS is being asked to pay, even with the discount that the manufacturer has offered, Sir Dillon further said.