Eli Lilly Alzheimer's drug to be blocked for use by NHS, The Telegraph reports

(Reuters) -Eli Lilly's treatment for early Alzheimer's is expected to be blocked for use by Britain's National Health Service (NHS), the Telegraph reported on Friday.

The drug donanemab would be rejected by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), which decides what drugs are available on the NHS, the newspaper reported citing insiders.

NHS and NICE declined to comment, while Eli Lilly did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

NICE is also unlikely to go back on its decision to reject a previous Alzheimer's drug, lecanemab, the report said.

Earlier this week, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) stated that lecanemab's high cost and intensive monitoring requirements for side effects make it poor value for taxpayers.

Lecanemab is the first treatment for Alzheimer's licensed for use in the country that shows some evidence of slowing the progression of the disease.

Donanemab is reported to be even more effective at slowing down the progression of Alzheimer's disease and was hailed as the "best ever" treatment for the disease by scientists, the Telegraph reported.

The MHRA may not approve donanemab due to concerns regarding risk of side-effects, according to the report. Both the drugs have been approved for use in the United States.

A decision on donanemab has been delayed, with the regulatory agency initially planning to make a call in July, the same time it was approved for use in the U.S., the report said.

(Reporting by Nilutpal Timsina and Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid and Sandra Maler)