Takeda receives CHMP backing for cancer drug Adcetris

Takeda and Millennium's new brentuximab vedotin-based cancer drug Adcetris has been granted a conditional recommendation for approval by Europe's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP).

The European Medicines Agency committee endorsed the drug for use in two indications – for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory CD30-positive Hodgkin lymphoma following autologous stem cell transplant or at least two prior therapies, and for use among adults with relapsed or refractory systemic anaplastic large cell lymphoma.

Clinical trial data supports the efficacy of the drug in these specifications and could prove vital in the treatment of these two rare lymphoma types, for which very few treatments are currently available.

Brentuximab vedotin was granted orphan product designation by the Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products in 2009.

Trevor Smith, head of commercial operations at Takeda Pharmaceuticals in Europe and Canada, said: "Takeda is dedicated to developing innovative and novel therapeutics that make a real difference to patients' lives. If approved, brentuximab vedotin will be the third product in the Takeda oncology franchise to be launched in Europe."

Last month, the company was granted a new European regulatory approval for its chronic kidney disease therapy Rienso.