Janssen’s daratumumab shows multiple myeloma survival benefits

Janssen has announced new clinical data that further demonstrates the benefits its drug Darzalex, also known as daratumumab, provides for multiple myeloma patients.

The phase III MMY3003/POLLUX trial evaluated the immunotherapy in combination with a standard-of-care treatment regimen of lenalidomide and dexamethasone among patients with multiple myeloma who had received at least one prior line of therapy.

A 63 percent improvement in progression-free survival rates was observed compared to lenalidomide and dexamethasone alone, while daratumumab was also shown to significantly increase the overall response rate.

The findings demonstrate the potential of daratumumab for use in combination with either a proteasome inhibitor or immunomodulatory agent.

Dr Peter Lebowitz, global oncology head at Janssen, said: "From the outset, the Janssen team has focused on delivering a comprehensive development plan for daratumumab that accelerates our understanding of this promising compound in a variety of clinical settings."

This comes after the firm announced study results showing the efficacy of daratumumab plus bortezomib and dexamethasone last week.