People with a rare form of multiple sclerosis will finally get access to a drug that can slow the disease’s progress after NHS bosses pressured its maker to lower the price.

The National Institute for health and Care Excellence (NICE) has approved the drug, ocrelizumab, after negotiations between NHS England and Roche, which manufactures it under the name Ocrevus.

The MS Society hailed “a landmark moment” for the estimated 2,700 patients who will now be eligible to obtain it on the NHS.

The deal is significant because it is the first medication that has become available for those with primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS).

It is the latest expensive drug that the NHS has been able to start offering after its discussions with Nice and pharmaceutical companies led to the latter dropping their price for a lengthening list of products.

Previous negotiations between NHS England and drug firms have led to patients getting access to a number of cancer drugs after lower prices meant they gained approval.

That includes children in England being treated for the first time with Kymriah, a cancer immunotherapy treatment, when its manufacturer, Novartis, agreed to sell it to the NHS more cheaply than its £282,000 list price.

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