Charities Unite to Welcome Cancer Drugs Fund and Provide Messages of Hope for People Living With Cancer

Patients in the UK to Gain Access to Life Saving Cancer Drugs Through the Launch of the Interim Fund

WELWYN GARDEN CITY, England, October 1, 2010 - People in the UK, who currently have significantly poorer access to
cancer medicines compared to those in Europe[i], could soon be gaining access
to life saving cancer treatments which are currently not available on the
NHS, with the launch of the Cancer Drugs Fund. The interim funding of GBP50
million for cancer drugs made available today is ahead of the introduction of
a longer term Cancer Drugs Fund of GBP600 million from 2011-2014.

To view the Multimedia News Release, please click:

multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/prne/wishingwall/46284/

With more than 1 in 3 people in the UK diagnosed with some form of cancer
in their lifetime[ii], many of us have been impacted by cancer in some way,
whether personally or through friends and family affected by the disease. To
celebrate the launch of the Cancer Drugs Fund, a group of charities have come
together to create a 'Wishing Wall' that will share what this fund could mean
for patients by displaying their hopes, dreams and wishes, as well as the
wishes of family, friends and other people who have been touched by cancer.

The Wishing Wall will be travelling around London throughout the day on
October 1st, stopping at Leicester Square and Covent Garden to allow members
of the public to pledge their wish and learn more about the campaign and the
Cancer Drugs Fund. To see the Wishing Wall in action and hear from a patient
that has pledged a wish to the campaign click on the following link
multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/prne/wishingwall/46284/

Alongside this, the Wishing Wall website will also be launched, allowing
people from across the UK to pledge their wish online and to view the hopes
and wishes of other campaign supporters.

To view the wishes of the nation or to make a wish visit
www.thewishingwall.co.uk.

About the Cancer Drugs Fund

GBP50 million has been set aside from October 2010 until April 2011 to
give patients access to cancer treatments for which no routine NHS funding is
available, including:

    - Treatments which have yet to be appraised by NICE and for which there
      is no positive local funding policy
    - Treatments which have been rejected by NICE

Accessing the fund

Currently, there is limited information about how clinicians and patients
will be able to access the interim Cancer Drugs Fund. However, the funding
does mean that clinicians can use their expert judgement and provide the most
appropriate treatment for their patients.

The Government has made clear that it wishes to use the Cancer Drugs Fund
as an interim step until value based pricing is introduced in 2014. A
consultation on how the Cancer Drugs Fund will operate in the longer term is
expected shortly.

About the Wishing Wall

The Wishing Wall campaign aims to raise awareness of the Cancer Drugs
Fund and to celebrate what it means for people living with cancer in the UK.
By sharing the hopes and wishes of patients, their family and friends,
charities and anyone who has been touched or affected by cancer, the Wishing
Wall plans to show the country the positive effect this fund will have for
those that matter most - people living with cancer.

The following charities are supporting the Wishing Wall campaign and
welcome the launch of the Cancer Drugs Fund: Beating Bowel Cancer, Bowel
Cancer UK, Leukaemia CARE, Rarer Cancers Foundation, Lymphoedema Support
Network.

Roche Products Ltd has financed and provided administrative support for
the Wishing Wall.

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[i] Extent and causes of international variations in drug usage. A
report for the Secretary of State for Health by Professor Sir Mike Richards.
July 2010.

[ii] Office for National Statistics, Cancer. Available here:
www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=915

Video:
multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/prne/wishingwall/46284/

Helen Crow, Helen.Crow at ketchumpleon.com, +44(0)20-7611-3654