Recent reports have revealed that Novartis has filed a lawsuit, following which Isle of Wight NHS has declared that it will not be using cancer drug Avastin for treatment of eye condition, instead of Lucentis.

It has been reported that the Isle of Wight and also Southampton, Hampshire, Portsmouth PCTs were legally challenged by Novartis over the use of Avastin, without the approval of higher authorities for treating Wet Age-related Macular Degeneration, which causes blindness.

It has been recovered that Avastin was being used as a cheap alternative for Lucentis, manufactured by Novartis and is sold across Europe. Its annual turnover is more than $2 billion. Moreover, Lucentis has been approved and recommended by National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE).

It was in April when Novartis asked for the courts to decide as to how many hospitals in the above mentioned areas were using an unlicensed drug in a state-run National Health Service. The Swiss drugmaker highlighted that the drug could put the life of patient at risk.

The health authority said, “It would fight the case - but it has now decided to back down and discontinue its policy of offering Avastin. New price discounts for Lucentis would help soften the financial impact”.