Merck Serono applies for Erbitux lung cancer extension

Merck Serono has applied to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to extend the indication of its product Erbitux to certain non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) sufferers.

The company is seeking approval for the drug in combination with standard first-line platinum-based chemotherapy among NSCLC patients with high epidermal growth factor receptor expression.

Merck Serono is hoping that Erbitux can represent a new treatment option for a condition that accounts for 80 percent of all lung cancer cases and is currently extremely difficult to treat.

Its submission to the EMA is based on data from the FLEXa phase III clinical trial, which showed a high response rate to Erbitux among patients in this category.

Further results from the study have since been analysed by Merck Serono and will be presented at forthcoming medical conferences.

This comes after the firm announced in January 2011 that it has completed enrolment for an ongoing phase III Erbitux study that is evaluating the drug as a gastric cancer therapy.