Bristol-Myers Squibb Co has announced that the US Food and Drug Administration approved its treatment, Opdivo, for patients whose lung cancer had progressed even after undergoing chemotherapy and at least one other therapy.
Reuters Health reports that the drug competes with Merck & Co’s Keytruda and belongs to a class of treatments that work by activating the immune system to attack tumours.
Both treatments have racked up approvals for indications, including melanoma, lung cancer and head and neck cancer.
Bristol-Myers is quoted in the report as saying that Opdivo is the first immune-oncology treatment approved for patients with small cell lung cancer, which accounts for about 10% to 15% of all lung cancers.
[link url="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-bristol-myers-fda/fda-approves-bristol-myers-opdivo-for-small-cell-lung-cancer-idUSKBN1L21HE"]Reuters Health report[/link]