AstraZeneca and Merck & Co (MSD outside the US and Canada) have announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Lynparza for the maintenance treatment of adult patients with deleterious or suspected deleterious germline or somatic BRCA-mutated (gBRCAm or sBRCAm) advanced epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube or primary peritoneal cancer who are in complete or partial response to first-line platinum-based chemotherapy, as detected by an FDA-approved companion diagnostic test.
Phase III SOLO-1 trial
This is the first regulatory approval for a PARP inhibitor in the 1st-line maintenance setting for BRCAmadvanced ovarian cancer. The approval was based on positive results from the pivotal Phase III SOLO-1 trial in which Lynparza reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 70 percent in patients with BRCAm advanced ovarian cancer who were in complete or partial response to platinum-based chemotherapy (HR 0.30 [95% CI 0.23-0.41], p<0.0001) compared to placebo following platinum-based chemotherapy. The safety profile of Lynparza was consistent with previous trials.
“Women with ovarian cancer are often first diagnosed with advanced disease, which is associated with poor outcomes. In SOLO-1, Lynparza in the first-line maintenance setting reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 70 percent for patients with BRCAm advanced ovarian cancer. Today’s approval is a critical advancement and brings us closer to our goal of helping these patients achieve long-term remission,” said Dave Fredrickson, Executive Vice President, Head of the Oncology Business Unit, AstraZeneca.
Exploring additional trials
AstraZeneca and MSD are exploring additional trials in advanced ovarian cancer, including the ongoing GINECO/ENGOTov25 Phase III trial, PAOLA-1. This trial is testing the effect ofLynparza in combination with bevacizumab as a maintenance treatment for patients with newly-diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer, regardless of their BRCA status. Results are expected during the second half of 2019.
Financial considerations
Under the oncology collaboration with MSD and following this new approval for Lynparza, AstraZeneca will receive $70 million as Ongoing Externalisation Revenue.
Photo of Dave Fredrickson: AstraZeneca
