'Funeral march' protest against Herceptin ruling

Of the Pharmac decision: 'I think it really sucks,' says breast cancer patient Joanne Byrne. Picture / Glenn Jeffrey

Joanne Byrne had a special reason for being at a Herceptin funding protest in Auckland yesterday - she wanted to find ways to raise money to pay for the expensive drug herself.

Around 40 people, many with pink arm bands and mainly women, marched silently in the lunchtime drizzle across Aotea Square.

Six "pallbearers", including National MP Dr Jackie Blue and Herceptin patient Anne Hayden, carried a pink coffin from Queen St to the steps of the Aotea Centre.

On the coffin were the words: "Breast cancer kills. Herceptin saves lives."

Other protesters carried placards with messages such as "Save our sisters, fund Herceptin" and "Our women are worth it, increase the drugs budget".

The sombre event was organised by the Breast Cancer Advocacy Coalition and the Herceptin Heroes to protest against Pharmac's decision last Friday not to extend funding of Herceptin to women with early HER2-protein-positive breast cancer. It already funds the drug for women in the terminal stage of the cancer.

Around 20 women with early breast cancer are paying for Herceptin themselves, at an average cost of more than $100,000.

Pharmac and the district health boards decided that the cost of funding the drug for early breast cancer was unjustified in light of the clinical trial data Pharmac had seen. A Pharmac committee will review the latest data this month.

An estimated 400 of the more than 2500 breast cancer cases diagnosed in New Zealand each year are HER2-positive.

Joanne Byrne, a 38-year-old primary school teacher from Laingholm, West Auckland, was diagnosed with HER2 breast cancer in March. She has had a mastectomy, is receiving chemotherapy and will later have radiation therapy.

Herceptin will cost her around $112,000. She and her partner have some money but not enough and they will have to raise more funds.

She is considering holding an auction or garage sale and hopes to find a sponsor to pay for the goods, but admits to feeling daunted by the prospect of asking for financial help.

Asked for her opinion of the Pharmac decision, Joanne Byrne said: "I think it really sucks. I'm really dismayed that Pharmac said no."

She had read a lot about Herceptin and expected it would give her a very good chance of surviving without the cancer recurring. "But it's not saying it's the cure for cancer."

Dr Blue, a breast physician, said of Herceptin: "It's an astonishing drug, reducing the rate of recurrence; and the survival data is coming through. With longer follow-up I'm sure it will get better and better.

"We will not give up this fight. I have the support of my colleagues."

Coalition chair Libby Burgess said of the decision: "We know, Pharmac knows and the Government knows that this will result in unnecessary loss of lives of women who now have early, curable cancer."

At Ms Burgess' request, the protesters observed a moment's silence for those who had died, and those who will die, of breast cancer. She then asked the participants to place a flower, or a note to a breast cancer victim, in the coffin.