March 29, 2021: “Incyte announced that the European Commission (EC) has approved Pemazyre® (pemigatinib) for the treatment of adults with locally advanced or metastatic cholangiocarcinoma with a fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) fusion or rearrangement that have progressed after at least one prior line of systemic therapy.
The decision follows the positive opinion received from the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use in January 2021 recommending the conditional marketing authorization of Pemazyre.
“Pemazyre’s approval is a crucial milestone for patients with FGFR2 positive cholangiocarcinoma.
It is the first new treatment option to be made available to these patients in the EU in over a decade and has demonstrated a high rate of durable responses in a setting where historically there has been no effective standard of care,” said Hervé Hoppenot, Chief Executive Officer, Incyte.
“We now look forward to working with individual countries in Europe to ensure eligible patients can access this new treatment as soon as possible.”
The EC decision is based on data from the FIGHT-202 study evaluating the safety and efficacy of Pemazyre in adult patients with previously treated, locally advanced or metastatic cholangiocarcinoma with documented FGF/FGFR status.
Interim results from FIGHT-202 demonstrated that in patients harboring FGFR2 fusions or rearrangements (Cohort A [108 patients]), Pemazyre monotherapy resulted in an overall response rate (ORR) of 37 percent (primary endpoint) and a median duration of response (DOR) of 8 months (secondary endpoint) based on an independent central radiographic review.
Pemazyre was generally well tolerated. Warnings and precautions for Pemazyre include high and low levels of phosphate in the blood, vision or eye problems, blood creatinine increase and for women who are pregnant, a risk of harm to the fetus.
“The data from the FIGHT-202 study has demonstrated the potential benefits that pemigatinib may have for eligible patients living with cholangiocarcinoma,” said Eric Van Cutsem, M.D., Ph.D., Professor and Division Head of Digestive Oncology, University of Leuven (KUL) and University Hospitals Gasthuisberg, Leuven, Belgium.
“Pemazyre offers a much-needed option to eligible patients that have only had few effective treatment options until today.”
Cholangiocarcinoma is a rare cancer that forms in the bile duct.
It is classified based on its origin: intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma occurs in the bile duct inside the liver and extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma occurs in the bile duct outside the liver.
Patients with cholangiocarcinoma are often diagnosed at a late or advanced stage when the prognosis is poor.
In Europe, the incidence of cholangiocarcinoma ranges between 6,000 – 8,000.
FGFR2 fusions or rearrangements occur almost exclusively in intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, where they are observed in 10-16 percent of patients.
“Historically, patients living with advanced cholangiocarcinoma have had very limited treatment options,” said Helen Morement, CEO, AMMF – The Cholangiocarcinoma Charity.
“We are encouraged to see new, targeted therapies starting to be approved in Europe, giving hope to those in desperate need of alternatives.”
About FIGHT-202
The FIGHT-202 Phase 2, open-label, multicenter study (NCT02924376) is evaluating the safety and efficacy of Pemazyre – a selective fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR) inhibitor – in adult (age ≥ 18 years) patients with previously treated, locally advanced or metastatic cholangiocarcinoma with documented FGF/FGFR status.
Patients were enrolled into one of three cohorts – Cohort A (FGFR2 fusions or rearrangements), Cohort B (other FGF/FGFR genetic alterations) or Cohort C (no FGF/FGFR genetic alterations).
All patients received 13.5mg Pemazyre orally once daily (QD) on a 21-day cycle (two weeks on/one week off) until radiological disease progression or unacceptable toxicity.
The primary endpoint of FIGHT-202 is overall response rate (ORR) in Cohort A, assessed by independent review per RECIST v1.1. Secondary endpoints include ORR; progression free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), duration of response (DOR), disease control rate (DCR) and safety in all cohorts.
About FIGHT
The FIGHT (FIbroblast Growth factor receptor in oncology and Hematology Trials) clinical trial program includes ongoing Phase 2 and 3 studies investigating safety and efficacy of Pemazyre therapy across several FGFR-driven malignancies.
Phase 2 monotherapy studies include FIGHT-202, as well as FIGHT-201 investigating Pemazyre in patients with metastatic or surgically unresectable bladder cancer, including with activating FGFR3 mutations or fusions/rearrangements; FIGHT-203 in patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms with activating FGFR1 fusions/rearrangements; FIGHT-207 in patients with previously treated, locally-advanced/metastatic or surgically unresectable solid tumor malignancies harboring activating FGFR mutations or fusions/rearrangements, irrespective of tumor type.
FIGHT-302 is a Phase 3 study investigating Pemazyre as a first-line treatment for patients with cholangiocarcinoma with FGFR2 fusions or rearrangements.
About Pemazyre® (pemigatinib)
Pemazyre is a kinase inhibitor indicated in the United States for the treatment of adults with previously treated, unresectable locally advanced or metastatic cholangiocarcinoma with a fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) fusion or other rearrangement as detected by an FDA-approved test.
This indication is approved under accelerated approval based on overall response rate and duration of response. Continued approval for this indication may be contingent upon verification and description of clinical benefit in a confirmatory trial(s).
In Japan, Pemazyre is approved for the treatment of patients with unresectable biliary tract cancer (BTC) with a fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) fusion gene, worsening after cancer chemotherapy.
In Europe, Pemazyre is approved for the treatment of adults with locally advanced or metastatic cholangiocarcinoma with a fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) fusion or rearrangement that have progressed after at least one prior line of systemic therapy.
Pemazyre is a potent, selective, oral inhibitor of FGFR isoforms 1, 2 and 3 which, in preclinical studies, has demonstrated selective pharmacologic activity against cancer cells with FGFR alterations.
Pemazyre is marketed by Incyte in the United States, Europe and Japan.
Incyte has granted Innovent Biologics, Inc. rights to develop and commercialize pemigatinib in hematology and oncology in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. Incyte has retained all other rights to develop and commercialize pemigatinib outside of the United States.
Pemazyre is a trademark of Incyte Corporation.
Safety Information from the EU Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC)
Pemazyre may cause serious adverse reactions. The most common serious adverse reactions were hyponatremia and blood creatinine increase.
The most common adverse reactions were hyperphosphatemia, alopecia, diarrhoea, nail toxicity, fatigue, nausea, dysgeusia, stomatitis, constipation, dry mouth, dry eye, arthralgia, hypophosphatemia, dry skin and palmar-plantar erythrodysaesthesia syndrome.
Prolonged hyperphosphatemia can cause precipitation of calcium-phosphate crystals that can lead to hypocalcemia, soft tissue mineralization, anemia, secondary hyperparathyroidism, muscle cramps, seizure activity, QT interval prolongation and arrhythmias.
Soft tissue mineralization, including cutaneous calcification and calcinosis, have been observed with Pemazyre treatment.
Recommendations for management of hyperphosphatemia include dietary phosphate restriction, administration of phosphate-lowering therapy and dose modification when required.
Pemazyre can cause serous retinal detachment reactions, which may present with symptoms such as blurred vision, visual floaters or photopsia.
Ophthalmological examination, including optical coherence tomography (OCT) should be performed prior to initiation of therapy and every 2 months for the first 6 months of treatment, every 3 months afterwards, and urgently at any time for visual symptoms.
For serous retinal detachment reactions, the dose modification guidelines should be followed.
Pemazyre should not be used during pregnancy unless the clinical condition of the women requires treatment with Pemazyre.
Patients with cancer cells that have spread into the brain or spinal cord should notify their physician before initiating treatment with Pemazyre.”
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