Evusheld available in the UK to buy privately

This situation is developing quickly. We will continue to update this web page as we learn more about Evusheld. Page last updated 9th December 2022.

Update November 2022: We are currently speaking to experts about some recent data that suggests Evusheld may not be effective against the most recent and dominant variants of covid in the UK. See below for this important information if you are considering getting Evusheld.

On this page:

• What is Evusheld?
• Can I buy Evusheld privately in the UK?
• How much does Evusheld cost?
• How can I access Evusheld?
• How is Evusheld given?
• Who is eligible for private access to Evusheld?
• Is Evusheld effective?
• Are there any conditions or treatments that mean you can’t have Evusheld?
• Do I need Evusheld every 6 months?
• If I have Evusheld, and then I get covid, can I still take the post-exposure covid treatments (antivirals or antibodies)
• What next if I want to access Evusheld?

Evusheld (tixagevimab/cilgavimab) is a treatment made by the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca. It is given by injection. It is an antibody treatment that can be used to prevent people with blood cancer from getting covid. This makes it an important option for people with blood cancer who may not have had a good response to the covid vaccines.

Evusheld is not a substitute for covid vaccination however. For the best protection, you should make sure you have all of your recommended vaccine doses.

In October 2022, we were told by AstraZeneca that they have decided to make Evusheld available privately in the UK, effective from 19th October 2022. This means people can pay to have it, but it’s not available free on our NHS.

We do not know how many clinics are currently it and where they are located, but we are aware that some people with blood cancer have now had Evusheld.

We know many people with blood cancer will not be able to afford this treatment privately, and for others it will mean making difficult financial choices. This is not the way Blood Cancer UK wants Evusheld to become available. We believe access to Evusheld should be based on clinical need, not wealth. That's why we were lobbying the government to make Evusheld available on the NHS.

There are also now questions over Evusheld's effectiveness against the newer variants now dominant in the UK.

Evusheld (tixagevimab/cilgavimab) will cost a private healthcare provider £1,000 per dose (£1,200 including VAT). Each dose is 600mg (containing 300mg of tixagevimab and 300mg of cilgavimab). This is the recommended dose for an individual person.

While the private provider will pay £1,200 per dose, they will need to charge their patients more than this. There might be a charge for the consultation, plus the charge for the actual treatment. This means the cost to patients will be over £1,200. It's not possible to say exactly how much, as it will depend on how much the provider decides to charge.

You will need a prescription from a relevant healthcare professional to get Evusheld. We advise speaking to a specialist blood cancer doctor (a haematologist) if you are thinking about getting Evusheld.

There are various places you may be able to access Evusheld with a prescription, but this depends on who in the private sector is offering it.

AstraZeneca have already spoken to major health insurance providers, private healthcare providers and private hospitals, but we don’t know exactly which ones are offering now Evusheld.

Once you have a prescription for Evusheld, it's possible you could get it from:

• Private health insurance - if you already have private health insurance, then you’d need to ask your provider if they are able to offer you Evusheld.
• Private healthcare companies - private healthcare providers (Bupa for example) offer some treatments privately even if you don't have their insurance. You’d need to ask the provider if they can offer you Evusheld.
• Private hospitals or clinics - private medical centres may offer Evusheld. Some NHS hospitals also have departments that deliver private care. You'd need to contact each private hospital or clinic to see whether they would offer you Evusheld.

Evusheld (tixagevimab/cilgavimab) is given as two separate injections – 300mg of tixagevimab and 300mg of cilgavimab. The injections are given into a muscle.

Evusheld needs to be prepared and given to you by a qualified healthcare professional in a sterile method and environment, where you can also be observed for any signs of reaction afterwards.

Evusheld is licensed in the UK to prevent covid in adults (over 18s) who:

• are unlikely to mount an adequate immune response to COVID-19 vaccination, or
• for whom COVID-19 vaccination is not recommended.

You need a prescription from a healthcare professional to access Evusheld. If your doctor thinks you fit either criteria above, for example because you are immunosuppressed, they may write you a prescription.

Evusheld was tested in clinical trials that ended in August 2021. It was shown to be highly effective at preventing infection with covid-19, and also at reducing the risk of severe disease and the chance of hospitalisation after an infection. Although this was at a time before Omicron was the dominant variant.

Evusheld targets a part of the virus that can mutate over time, as new covid variants emerge. This means that new mutations can increase or decrease Evusheld’s effectiveness. Since the clinical trials ended, Evusheld has been rolled out in other countries, and data from patients in those countries suggests that it’s effective against variants including Omicron BA.1 and BA.2. There’s less data available against BA.4 and BA.5, and no real-world data available against many of the variants circulating in November 2022, such as BQ.1, BQ.1.1, BA.2.75.2 and others. To find out which variants are circulating in the UK, you can look at the weekly ONS infection survey results.

In the absence of real-world data, we can look at modelling and laboratory testing to predict whether Evusheld will be effective against certain variants. Currently, one study using laboratory testing suggests that Evusheld has reduced or no efficacy against some newer variants including BQ.1, BQ.1.1, XBB and others, some of which are expected to become the dominant variants in the UK. Because these variants are so new, this is the first study that’s tested Evusheld against them, and we hope that more studies will be published soon.

For now, this recent study raises the question of how effective Evusheld is against the newer variants. We will continue to speak to external experts to get their views on what this means. As always, we will keep you updated as we learn more.

Evusheld is not a substitute for covid vaccination. For the best protection, you should make sure you have all of your recommended vaccine doses.

Evusheld can be given at least 2 weeks after any covid vaccine. It can be given between primary doses and booster doses, as long as there is a 2 week gap betweeen the covid vaccine and Evusheld.

Covid vaccines can be given at any time after Evusheld.

Evusheld is not licensed to give if you are hypersensitive or allergic to any of the ingredients.

Clinical trials found that a 600mg dose of Evusheld (tixagevimab/cilgavimab) was effective for 6 months. Therefore, AstraZeneca advises repeating the treatment every 6 months to continue the protection it provides. However, there have not been any clinical trials looking at boosters at 6 months.

There haven't been any studies looking at specific interactions with other drugs or medicines. Therefore, there are no particular treatments or medicines that you are advised to avoid after Evusheld.

If you do get covid, you should know how to access covid treatment. Make sure you tell your blood cancer doctor too, especially if you've also had Evusheld.

Talk to your NHS haematology team about this treatment, to ensure it's the right thing for you. If you don't have a specialist hospital team, speak to your GP.

We can help you prepare for conversations with your doctor about Evusheld. We can't help you access it directly, but we can give you information and support to help you ask your doctor about it.

If you have any questions about Evusheld or need support, please contact our support service.

This situation is developing quickly. We will continue to update this web page as we learn more about access to Evusheld.