A TERMINALLY-ILL cancer patient was given renewed hope last night after a life-extending drug was finally made available on the NHS.

Grandfather-to-be George King, 57, was jubilant after learning that new drug, Velcade, will be available to him when his rare form of bone marrow cancer, multiple myeloma, returns.

Drugs watchdog the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) reversed a previous ruling and has recommended a scheme to fund the drug (also known as bortezomib) for multiple myeloma sufferers in England and Wales who respond well to it.

Under the scheme - the first of its kind considered by Nice - the manufacturer would refund the NHS when the treatment does not work.

Father-of-three Mr King, from Skelton, east Cleveland, has campaigned for sufferers to receive the drug on the NHS in England and Wales - and even planned to move to Scotland, where it was available.

He said: "I'm still in remission, but I have to look to the future and I know for definite that the cancer will come back. It's terminal.

"When it does come back, this will hopefully give me another couple of years and, in that time, they will hopefully come up with another drug. That's all patients like myself can hope for."

Mr King was diagnosed with bone cancer five years ago.

"This has taken a massive weight off my shoulders," he said.

"My first grandchild is on its way in August, so this is great news. My wife will be over the moon. I definitely won't be moving to Scotland now."

The turnaround follows an appeal by the cancer charities Myeloma UK, Cancerbackup and Leukaemia CARE, which argued Nice's initial rejection of Velcade six months ago was based mainly on the grounds of cost, rather than effectiveness.

They said the decision was "perverse and unfair", particularly as the cost of the drug was just over the £30,000 threshold for NHS drugs.

Under the draft guidance issued at the weekend, Nice recommends that all suitable patients have access to the treatment, with the NHS continuing to fund the drug for those who show a full or partial response.

Patients who do not benefit should be taken off the treatment, with the cost refunded by the manufacturer, Janssen-Cilag, Nice said.

It said the new guidance followed an evaluation of a refund scheme put forward by Janssen-Cilag.

The guidance is subject to a three-week consultation, with final approval tabled for October.