Boehringer Ingelheim announced that UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has recommended company’s Vargatef (nintedanib) in combination with docetaxel to treat patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) within the National Health Service (NHS) in England and Wales.
The drug has been recommended to treat patients with NSCLC of adenocarcinoma histology, after first-line chemotherapy.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Boehringer Ingelheim solid tumour oncology medical head Dr Mehdi Shahidi said: "We are delighted with this announcement from NICE which represents an important milestone in the effort to extend survival for patients with adenocarcinoma of the lung following initial treatment with chemotherapy."
Nintedanib, in combination with docetaxel, is claimed to be the first and only triple angiokinase inhibitor available for EU patients with advanced NSCLC of adenocarcinoma histology, after first-line chemotherapy.
Vargetef was also approved for use without restriction within NHS Scotland, as per its licenced indication and is accepted by the Swedish Dental and Pharmaceutical Benefits Agency as a subsidised treatment of advanced lung cancer patients with adenocarcinoma in combination with docetaxel, after first-line chemotherapy.
The recommendations were based on the results of LUME-Lung 1 study trial that showed nintedanib plus docetaxel significantly prolonged progression-free survival compared with docetaxel alone for patients with adenocarcinoma.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataThe study also demonstrated that nintedanib plus docetaxel, significantly extended overall survival to beyond one year for patients with adenocarcinoma compared to docetaxel alone and it enabled one in four patients with adenocarcinoma to live for at least two years after first-line chemotherapy, according to the company.
In November 2014, EU approved Vargatef in combination with docetaxel to treat adult patients with locally advanced and metastatic or locally recurrent NSCLC of adenocarcinoma tumour histology, after first-line chemotherapy.
Image: Endobronchial radiation therapy for non-small cell lung cancer. Photo: courtesy of Tdvorak.
