Label Variation to Include Overall Survival Data From Phase 3 ENDEAVOR Trial

THOUSAND OAKS, CA, USA I January 30, 2018 I Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) today announced that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has adopted a positive opinion recommending a label variation for KYPROLIS® (carfilzomib) to include updated overall survival (OS) data from the Phase 3 head-to-head ENDEAVOR trial in patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma (KYPROLIS and dexamethasone [Kd] versus Velcade® [bortezomib] and dexamethasone [Vd]). The ENDEAVOR trial demonstrated that Kd reduced the risk of death by 21 percent and increased OS by 7.6 months versus Vd in patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma (median OS 47.6 months for Kd versus 40.0 months for Vd, HR=0.79; p=0.01).

“The positive opinion issued by the CHMP for KYPROLIS, which, in combination with dexamethasone, achieved superior overall survival versus Velcade and dexamethasone, underscores our commitment to helping patients live better, longer lives,” said David M. Reese, M.D., senior vice president of Translational Sciences and Oncology at Amgen. “We’re proud to share these results with European regulatory authorities and believe KYPROLIS is advancing the standard of care for patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.”

KYPROLIS is approved in the European Union (EU) for use in combination with dexamethasone or with lenalidomide plus dexamethasone (KRd) for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma who have received at least one prior therapy. The Kd regimen of twice-weekly KYPROLIS administered at 56 mg/m2 and the KRd regimen of twice-weekly KYPROLIS administered at 27 mg/m2 are the first and only therapeutic combinations to demonstrate consistently improved OS versus recent standards of care in two Phase 3 trials in relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma patients (Kd versus Vd and KRd versus lenalidomide and dexamethasone).

About ENDEAVOR
The randomized ENDEAVOR (RandomizEd, OpeN Label, Phase 3 Study of Carfilzomib Plus DExamethAsone Vs Bortezomib Plus DexamethasOne in Patients With Relapsed Multiple Myeloma) trial of 929 patients evaluated KYPROLIS in combination with low-dose dexamethasone versus bortezomib with low-dose dexamethasone in relapsed or refractory patients who previously received at least one, but not more than three, prior therapeutic regimens. The primary endpoint of the trial was progression-free survival, defined as the time from treatment initiation to disease progression or death. The primary analysis was published in The Lancet Oncology and is described in the Prescribing Information.

Patients received treatment until progression with KYPROLIS as a 30-minute infusion on days 1, 2, 8, 9, 15 and 16 of 28 day treatment cycles, along with low-dose dexamethasone (20 mg). For cycle one only, KYPROLIS was administered at 20 mg/mon days 1 and 2, and if tolerated was escalated to 56 mg/m2 from day 8 of cycle one onwards. Patients who received bortezomib (1.3 mg/m2) with low-dose dexamethasone (20 mg) were treated with Velcade administered subcutaneously or intravenously at the discretion of the investigator and in accordance with regional regulatory approval of bortezomib. More than 75 percent of the patients in the control arm received bortezomib subcutaneously. This study was conducted at 235 sites worldwide. For information about this trial, please visit www.clinicaltrials.gov under trial identification number NCT01568866.

About Multiple Myeloma
Multiple myeloma is an incurable blood cancer, characterized by a recurring pattern of remission and relapse.1 It is a rare and very aggressive disease that accounts for approximately one percent of all cancers.2,3 In Europe, approximately 39,000 patients are diagnosed with multiple myeloma each year and 24,000 patient deaths are reported on an annual basis.4

About KYPROLIS® (carfilzomib) 
Proteasomes play an important role in cell function and growth by breaking down proteins that are damaged or no longer needed.5 KYPROLIS has been shown to block proteasomes, leading to an excessive build-up of proteins within cells.6 In some cells, KYPROLIS can cause cell death, especially in myeloma cells because they are more likely to contain a higher amount of abnormal proteins.5,6

KYPROLIS is approved in the European Union for use in combination with dexamethasone or with lenalidomide plus dexamethasone for the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma who have received one to three lines of therapy.

KYPROLIS is also approved in Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Hong Kong, Israel, Japan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Macao, Mexico, Thailand, Colombia, S. Korea, Canada, Qatar, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Russia, Brazil, India, Oman and the United States. Additional regulatory applications for KYPROLIS are underway and have been submitted to health authorities worldwide.

About Amgen’s Commitment to Oncology
Amgen Oncology is committed to helping patients take on some of the toughest cancers, such as those that have been resistant to drugs, those that progress rapidly through the body and those where limited treatment options exist. Amgen’s supportive care treatments help patients combat certain side effects of strong chemotherapy, and our targeted medicines and immunotherapies focus on more than a dozen different malignancies, ranging from blood cancers to solid tumors. With decades of experience providing therapies for cancer patients, Amgen continues to grow its portfolio of innovative and biosimilar oncology medicines.

About Amgen 
Amgen is committed to unlocking the potential of biology for patients suffering from serious illnesses by discovering, developing, manufacturing and delivering innovative human therapeutics. This approach begins by using tools like advanced human genetics to unravel the complexities of disease and understand the fundamentals of human biology.

Amgen focuses on areas of high unmet medical need and leverages its expertise to strive for solutions that improve health outcomes and dramatically improve people’s lives. A biotechnology pioneer since 1980, Amgen has grown to be one of the world’s leading independent biotechnology companies, has reached millions of patients around the world and is developing a pipeline of medicines with breakaway potential.

For more information, visit www.amgen.com and follow us on www.twitter.com/amgen.

Velcade® (bortezomib) is a registered trademark of Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

References

  1. Jakubowiak A. Management Strategies for Relapsed/Refractory Multiple Myeloma: Current Clinical Perspectives. Seminars in Hematology. 2012; 49(3)(1),S16-S32.
  2. GLOBOCAN 2012. Global Prevalence and Incidence. http://globocan.iarc.fr/old/summary_table_pop_prev.asp?selection=224900&title=World&sex=0&window=1&sort=0&submit=%C2%A0Execute%C2%A0. Accessed on November 29, 2017.
  3. American Cancer Society. Multiple myeloma. http://www.cancer.org/acs/groups/cid/documents/webcontent/003121-pdf.pdf. Accessed November 29, 2017.
  4. GLOBOCAN 2012: Estimated Cancer Incidence, Mortality and Prevalence in 2012. http://globocan.iarc.fr/Pages/fact_sheets_population.aspx. Accessed November 29, 2017.
  5. Moreau P, Richardson PG, Cavo M, et al. Proteasome Inhibitors in Multiple Myeloma: 10 Years Later. Blood. 2012; 120(5):947-959.
  6. Kortuem KM and Stewart AK. Carfilzomib. Blood. 2012; 121(6):893-897.

SOURCE: Amgen