(Reuters) -GSK said on Thursday two combination therapies with its cancer drug, Blenrep, have received approval from British authorities for the treatment of a type of blood cancer in adults who had received at least one other therapy previously.
Britain’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) approved Blenrep’s use in combination with bortezomib and dexamethasone, or with pomalidomide and dexamethasone, for relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma, the drugmaker said.
Both bortezomib and pomalidomide are existing cancer therapies, while dexamethasone is a widely used generic steroid drug.
The approval is a major step forward for Blenrep, which was pulled from U.S. markets in 2022 after failing a late-stage study.
The MHRA’s authorization is based on late-stage studies, which showed that the combinations improved patients’ chances of survival overall or while controlling the duration until their disease worsened compared with the standard of care.
Blenrep belongs to a type of targeted cancer treatments called antibody-drug conjugates (ADC), which are engineered antibodies that bind to tumour cells and then release cell-killing chemicals, sparing healthy cells that are damaged during conventional chemotherapy.
“As the only BCMA-targeted ADC therapy, Blenrep has the potential … to extend survival and remission versus standard of care and redefine treatment at or after first relapse,” Hesham Abdullah, R&D head for oncology at GSK, said, referring to the protein on the cancer cells which Blenrep binds to.
Multiple myeloma is the third most common blood cancer globally and is generally considered treatable but not curable. It affects the immunity-boosting white blood cells.
GSK expects peak annual sales for Blenrep, chemically called belantamab mafodotin, of over 3 billion pounds ($3.97 billion). The drug is currently under review for approval in more than 10 countries.
(Reporting by Raechel Thankam Job and Pushkala Aripaka in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva)
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