Lilly receives EU approval for lung cancer drug Portrazza

Lilly has announced that its new lung cancer therapy Portrazza has been approved by the European Commission.

The drug has been approved as a first-line treatment option in combination with gemcitabine and cisplatin chemotherapy for patients with metastatic squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have not received prior chemotherapy.

It is the first biologic therapy to be licensed in the EU for this indication, having demonstrated in a phase III clinical trial that it can provide overall survival benefits compared to chemotherapy alone.

There is considerable demand for new treatment approaches for NSCLC, an aggressive type of cancer with a five-year survival rate of less than five percent.

Richard Gaynor, senior vice-president of product development and medical affairs for Lilly Oncology, said: "Today's news means that EU patients have a new first-line treatment option for this difficult-to-treat form of lung cancer."

This European approval comes after Portazza was licensed by the US Food and Drug Administration in November 2015.