FRANKFURT--Germany's Bayer AG (BAYN.XE) and U.S. company Onyx
Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ONXX) said Thursday their Nexavar tablets
improved progression-free survival in patients with radioactive
iodine refractory differentiated thyroid cancer in a late-stage
trial.
Bayer plans to submit the trial data as the basis for marketing
authorization of Nexavar in the treatment of this type of thyroid
cancer.
The drug, also called Sorafenib, reached the phase III trial's
primary endpoint in patents with locally advanced or metastatic
thyroid cancer, they said. The safety and tolerability were
generally consistent with the known profile of Nexavar. Detailed
efficacy and safety analysis from this study are expected to be
presented at an upcoming medical meeting.
"We are pleased that the results of this study demonstrate that
Nexavar may provide a treatment option" for patients with
RAI-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer, said Dimitris
Voliotis, vice president of Bayer's clinical development in
oncology.
Thyroid cancer is the sixth most common cancer in women. There
are more than 160,000 new cases of thyroid cancer and approximately
25,000 people die worldwide each year.
Papillary and follicular types of thyroid cancer are classified
as differentiated and account for that vast majority of thyroid
cancers. While the majority of differentiated thyroid cancers are
treatable, RAI-refractory, locally advanced, or metastatic disease
is associated with a lower survival rate.
Nexavar, an oral anti-cancer therapy for liver cancer and for
the treatment of patients with advanced kidney cancer, is currently
approved in more than 100 countries worldwide.
Write to Friedrich Geiger at friedrich.geiger@dowjones.com
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