Oncology Drug Approvals Under Health Canada’s Notice of Compliance With Conditions Policy: A Retrospective Cohort Analysis

Health Canada’s Notice of Compliance with conditions (NOC/c) policy provides expedited access to promising new therapies for serious conditions. This retrospective cohort analysis sought to examine the use of the NOC/c policy for oncology drugs, to determine whether confirmatory studies are aligned with the approved indication, and to assess the impact of the NOC/c policy by quantifying the number of oncology drugs approved under this policy that become the standard of care treatment for their respective indications. The findings suggest that Health Canada’s NOC/c policy has been successful in providing expedited access to promising new therapies. However, ensuring that confirmatory trials are under way at the time of NOC/c issuance may provide assurance that studies addressing the uncertainty associated with NOC/c will not be unnecessarily prolonged. The inclusion of real-world evidence (RWE) as part of confirmatory evidence may help fill gaps.