Children battling cancer in the UK are among those being denied access to life-saving drugs due to the mounting costs and bureaucratic hurdles triggered by Brexit, according to a confidential report seen by The Guardian. The report reveals a growing human toll as research trials vital for advancing cancer treatment are being slowed or derailed entirely.
One of the most striking examples involves the eSMART clinical trial, which is testing new, targeted drugs and chemotherapy for children, teenagers, and young adults with relapsed or treatment-resistant cancer. Originally a joint initiative between Paris and Birmingham, the cost of importing trial drugs into the UK has soared from €52,000 to €205,000 (£175,000) since Brexit took effect. These costs are primarily due to additional legal, regulatory, and logistical requirements for packaging, licensing, and importation.
Moreover, because the UK is no longer part of the EU, trial sponsors were required to appoint an additional Qualified Person (QP) to certify drugs before they could be used in Britain. The delay in securing this certification created significant setbacks, effectively halting the trial’s UK arm while it continued in the EU. This left British children without access to potentially life-changing treatment.
Dr Lynley Marshall, the UK lead for the eSMART trial and a paediatric oncology consultant at the Royal Marsden Hospital, said that Brexit had made it far harder to open innovative cancer trials in the UK. “Children and young people with cancer cannot wait,” she said, stressing that delays not only affect patients locally but also globally, as data from UK trials contributes to treatment improvements worldwide.
UK participation in the trial was eventually salvaged only after Cancer Research UK stepped in with a £92,000 funding lifeline. However, the broader implications remain troubling for Britain’s role in global medical research.
A second trial, Add Aspirin, which investigates whether daily aspirin can prevent cancer recurrence, is also facing a post-Brexit financial squeeze. The study - a collaboration between the UK, Ireland, and India has incurred additional certification and shipping costs of up to £50,000. Drugs for the trial, manufactured in Germany and packaged in Spain, now require bespoke logistics to bypass the UK when shipping to Irish sites, driving costs up tenfold.
The findings come amid the worst UK medicine shortages in four years, with Brexit identified as a key factor. Experts and clinicians warn that unless urgent measures are taken, the country risks falling behind in cancer research and clinical innovation.
The report underscores a stark reality: Britain’s exit from the EU is not just an economic or political issue — it’s one with very real consequences for patients, especially vulnerable children whose futures depend on swift access to cutting-edge treatments. With rising costs and increasing red tape, the urgency to resolve these systemic challenges has never been greater.
Speaking to Asian Voice, Dr CR Chandrasekar, Consultant Orthopaedics/Sarcoma Surgeon, LUHFT, Liverpool, UK, said, “Governments of various political leanings in the past have prioritised child healthcare services, including cancer care. Research into the causes and treatment of various cancers, including childhood leukaemia, has significantly improved survival rates. Clinical trials play a vital role in identifying new and effective treatment options. The political choice of Brexit by the British public has led to many changes, some of them negative. If true, reports that funding for cancer research is being cut are deeply concerning. Such cuts could restrict access to life-saving drugs and hinder progress toward finding cures for childhood cancers, potentially impacting many children in need. It is crucial to maintain funding for essential cancer research. I sincerely hope that any proposal to reduce such support is carefully reconsidered and reversed.”