following a full submission assessed under the end of life and orphan equivalent medicine process:
fruquintinib (Fruzaqla®) is not recommended for use within NHSScotland.
Indication under review: treatment of adult patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) who have been previously treated with available therapies, including fluoropyrimidine-, oxaliplatin-, and irinotecan-based chemotherapy, with or without an anti-VEGF therapy, and if RAS wildtype and medically appropriate, an anti-EGFR therapy.
Fruquintinib, compared with placebo, significantly improved overall survival in adults with mCRC who had been previously treated with available therapies.
The submitting company’s justification of the treatment’s cost in relation to its health benefits was not sufficient and in addition the company did not present a sufficiently robust economic analysis to gain acceptance by SMC.
This advice takes account of the views from a Patient and Clinician Engagement (PACE) meeting.
Medicine details
- Medicine name:
- fruquintinib (Fruzaqla)
- SMC ID:
- SMC2748
- Indication:
As monotherapy for the treatment of adult patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) who have been previously treated with available therapies, including fluoropyrimidine-, oxaliplatin-, and irinotecan-based chemotherapy, with or without an anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy and, if rat sarcomas virus (RAS) wildtype and medically appropriate, an anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) therapy.
- Pharmaceutical company
- Takeda UK Ltd
- BNF chapter
- Malignant disease and immunosuppression
- Submission type
- Full
- Status
- Not recommended
- Date advice published
- 12 May 2025