A CANCER patient who had to fight for the right to be treated with a new wonder drug is celebrating after a ruling that it should be made available throughout the NHS.

Ann Tittley, 55, from Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, went public earlier this year after specialists told her they were unable to prescribe a highly-effective drug to treat her chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML).

Recent trials show that Glivec can halt seven out of ten cases of CML and slow its progress in almost all cases.

Despite the fact that the first UK trials of Glivec involved North-East patients, some specialists in the region were unable to prescribe it to new patients.

Hospitals were waiting for a ruling from the independent National Institute for Clinical Excellence (Nice), which was set up to assess whether new drugs should be made available on the NHS.

Yesterday, Nice ruled that it should be a second-line treatment for patients in the early stage of the disease as well as the middle and late stages.

Initially, it looked as if Nice would support the drug's use only in the late stages, triggering protests from doctors.

Mrs Tittley, who was eventually given the new drug by her doctor at Bishop Auckland General Hospital, said: "Everyone now has the chance to try this new drug. I am glad they have seen sense."

Dr Ann Lennard, a consultant haematologist at Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary, said she was "very pleased" that Nice had expanded access to the drug.

"All credit to Nice for listening," she said.

An application to fund the £18,000-a-head annual costs of the drug is being considered by the Newcastle Hospitals NHS Trust.

CML is one of the most common types of leukaemia in England and Wales, with 600 cases being registered annually.

It accounts for more than one in six leukaemias in adults, and about 2,660 are known to have the disease.

If there are no appeals, the Nice ruling will become formal guidance for the NHS on August 27.

Dr Richard Sullivan, of Cancer Research UK, said: "This is the day leukaemia patients have been waiting for."

The appraisal by Nice states that additional cost to the NHS of Glivec treatment could be between £11.8m and £15.8m in the first year.

A bone marrow transplant remains the only cure for chronic myeloid leukaemia, but the shortage of donors, along with other factors, limits the number of people for whom this is an option.