GSK MEK inhibitor authorised in Europe!

The GSK MEK inhibitor (also Trametinib, now called Mekinist ® has been approved in Europe-  http://goo.gl/xoZwrN

So now we are waiting for the up-date of the BRAF/MEK combination versus BRAF mono therapy! The latest results as presented at ASCO surprisingly looked like that the GSK BRAF monotherapy (Dabrafenib) was actually better than initially assumed- much more in the league of the Novartis BRAF inhibitor which makes for quite some interesting thoughts in the light of the currently ongoing Novartis/ GSK deal, especially as Dabrafenib was priced at a *lower price* than Vemurafenib in the US- so who knows we might actually see the day where we get better drugs for lower prices, very much in line with the recognition of the Novartis CEO Jimenez that the endless stacking of expensive cancer therapies is not sustainable as published this April in Forbes.

These latest results are at odds with previous results that had shown that the BRAF/ MEK combo resulted in longer time to resistance and fewer side effects, in particular less joint pain, rash and new skin cancers forming than either mono therapy with a BRAF or a MEK inhibitor.

Because the REAL question is obviously going to be- who is going to pay for a drug that in mono-therapy is not as good as a BRAF inhibitor?