Boehringer Ingelheim receives EU approval for lung cancer drug Vargatef

Boehringer Ingelheim has announced that its newest lung cancer therapy Vargatef has been approved by the European Commission.

The nintedanib-based treatment has been ratified for use in combination with docetaxel among adult patients with locally advanced, metastatic or locally recurrent non-small cell lung cancer of adenocarcinoma tumour histology, after first-line chemotherapy.

In clinical studies, this combination demonstrated median overall survival for advanced lung cancer patients with adenocarcinoma after first-line chemotherapy over one year. This approval was primarily based on the LUME-Lung 1 study, which involved more than 1,300 patients in 27 countries.

The drug also showed a manageable adverse event profile without further compromising patients' overall health-related quality of life. 

Professor Klaus Dugi, chief medical officer at Boehringer Ingelheim, said: "The approval of Vargatef expands our oncology portfolio, following last year's approval of Giotrif for another specific type of lung cancer."

Nintedanib was also recommended for European regulatory approval as a treatment for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis earlier this week.