- Written by Aurelia Foster
- BBC News health reporter
image source, Getty Images
The first oral treatment to prevent both chronic and episodic migraines could soon be available on the NHS.
Health experts said up to 170,000 people in the UK could benefit from taking atogepant to prevent severe and debilitating headaches.
Recommended for people who are unable to take injections or when other medicines do not work.
One migraine charity described this as a positive step and said it hoped the drug would be available “quickly”.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommended the drug, which comes in pill form, after clinical trials suggested it was effective in some adults.
In the final draft guidance, NICE said atogepant should be offered to people who have tried three other medicines, taken by injection or intravenously, without success.
Migraines are often characterized by throbbing pain on one side of the head, which can last several days. Other symptoms include dizziness, light sensitivity, and difficulty speaking.
Atogepant is designed to be taken daily to prevent both chronic migraines (occurring 15 or more times per month) and episodic migraines (occurring 4 to 15 times per month).
Initially, it will only be available to specialists in secondary care settings, not general physicians.
Rob Musick, chief executive of the Migraine Trust, said this was good news because migraines can be very “debilitating”.
“Many people still rely on treatments developed for other conditions, so it’s positive to see more treatments emerge for people with migraines.”
But the charity warned that many people are struggling to access similar new drugs due to lack of knowledge among doctors and long waiting lists for specialists.
“We need to ensure rapid access so migraine patients can benefit from it as soon as possible,” Musick said.
image source, Deborah Sloan
Deborah Sloan said she found similar new migraine treatments effective but difficult to obtain.
Life “gets back on track”
Atogepant is A new type of anti-calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) drug, It is specifically designed to treat migraines. They work by blocking receptors for the CGRP protein. It is found in nerves in the head and neck and is thought to be a cause of inflammation and migraines. These drugs have fewer side effects than older migraine drugs originally developed for other conditions.
Deborah Sloane, from Brighton, told the BBC she had suffered from chronic migraines for 40 years, but rimegepant had helped her get her life “back on track”. Other treatments have caused severe side effects.
She said she was sick with migraines on the 20th of every month and lost two careers, but is now able to work again.
“I was at my limit,” she said. “I felt so hopeless and didn’t know how to survive. The migraine attacks were so bad that I thought I couldn’t have them again.
“Sometimes I’m vomiting constantly for three days. I can’t do anything. I feel like I want to die. I felt that way too.”
However, Sloan said she initially had to obtain rimegepant privately because it took a long time to get a referral to a specialist who could prescribe it.
Atogepant is expected to be available on the NHS in England from next month.
It is already used in Scotland to prevent and relieve migraine symptoms.
