Thousands of women per year will benefit from two new breast cancer drugs that will be made available through the NHS.

Some 3,000 women a year will benefit from life-extending drug Alpelisib, the NHS announced.

Additionally, 650 patients with a certain type of breast cancer will be given access to Trodelvy, which has finally been given the green light for NHS use, despite being preliminarily rejected earlier this year.

Alpelisib, which is manufactured by Novartis, is used in combination with the hormone therapy Fulvestrant, to target the gene that causes fast-growing tumours.

The drug, also known as Piqray, when used with Fulvestrant works by blocking the gene’s ability to help cancer cells to survive and grow.

Lancashire Telegraph: Alpelisib and Trodelvy are the two new drugs that will be made available through the NHS (PA)Alpelisib and Trodelvy are the two new drugs that will be made available through the NHS (PA)

One study showed that half of people who received the treatment combination after previous therapies were able to stop the growth of their cancer for six months.

People with a mutation in the specific gene called PIK3CA will be eligible for treatment if they have explored other treatment options, with an estimated 3,000 to benefit each year.

Meanwhile, Trodelvy, also called Sacituzumab Govitecan and made by Gilead Sciences, has also been approved to treat a type of cancer which cannot be removed surgically.

The drug can benefit women with triple negative incurable secondary breast cancer.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) said the aim of the new treatment is to target a protein on the surface of the tumour cells which eventually causes them to die.

Clinical trials show the drug can slow progression of the disease by several months and extend a person’s life by around five months compared with traditional chemotherapy.

Both the drugs are to be made available by the NHS in England through the Cancer Drugs Fund.

Helen Knight, interim director of medicines evaluation at Nice, said: “Both Piqray and Trodelvy are effective additional options that hold out the hope of a longer and a better quality of life for people with these types of advanced breast cancer.

“And both represent another step in delaying chemotherapy, allowing people to stay well for longer.

“We are pleased that the companies which make these drugs have been able to work so constructively with us and NHS England to agree deals which mean we can make both available routinely on the NHS for around 3,450 people with these types of advanced breast cancer.”

Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay said: “We are constantly monitoring the most promising treatments. The incredible work of the Cancer Drugs Fund has now provided early access to 100 cancer treatments for more than 80,000 patients since 2016 and is a pioneer for innovation.”