Will tucatinib/tucatinib be included in medical insurance in 2026?

Tucatinib/Tucatinib (Tucatinib) is a targeted anti-cancer drug specifically targeting HER2-positive breast cancer patients, especially those with brain metastases, and has been widely used in the international market. However, despite its remarkable results in clinical applications and research data overseas, tucatinib’s original drug is not yet sold in the Chinese market, and therefore has not been included in China’s medical insurance system. This situation reflects the common challenges faced by many innovative drugs in the Chinese market, especially those that have not yet been launched on the market.

The clinical value of tucatinib is mainly reflected in its therapeutic effect on advanced or metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer, especially in patients with brain metastases. However, since tucatinib has not yet entered the domestic market, patients can only obtain this drug through specific import channels, and the price is naturally higher. Because it is not officially on the market and is not included in the scope of medical insurance reimbursement, patients have a heavy treatment burden, which also results in many patients being unable to obtain treatment with this drug.

In China, one of the main reasons why the original drug tucatinib is not included in the medical insurance is the complexity of drug approval and market access in China. The approval process for innovative drugs is often lengthy, especially for drugs that have not yet been officially registered in the local market. Issues of patient accessibility and treatment costs often become obstacles that need to be resolved. Therefore, even if the therapeutic effect of tucatinib has been recognized globally, how to introduce the drug into the Chinese market and include it in medical insurance still requires long-term cooperation and communication between drug research and development companies and regulatory agencies.

Nevertheless, as the country continues to accelerate the approval of innovative drugs, and more and more patients and medical experts call for improving the accessibility of advanced drugs, tucatinib may enter the Chinese market and gradually be included in the medical insurance system in the future.

Reference: https://www.drugs.com/tucatinib.html