Merck gets FDA approval for anti-vomiting drug

Merck, parent company of MSD (Merck Sharp & Dohme), has been granted approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for further use of the drug Emend.

Emend is used to stop nausea and vomiting in patients receiving chemotherapy and the FDA approval allows it to be used in combination with other such drugs, or antiemetics.

Dr Kelly Pendergrass, clinical investigator and medical oncologist at the Kansas City Cancer Centre, said: “Patients with cancer are not only facing a serious illness, they also face the possibility of distressing side effects such as nausea and vomiting from their chemotherapy, and breast cancer patients are particularly susceptible to these side effects.

“The good news is that, with this expanded indication, Emend can now be used with other antiemetics in the wider population of patients receiving moderately emetogenic chemotherapy to help prevent these worrisome and challenging side effects before they occur.”

The FDA approval was based on a study that showed the use of Emend with other drugs reduced the chances of nausea and vomiting during chemotherapy for breast cancer.

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