FDA Oks Novartis Drug Odomzo For Locally Advanced Basal Cell Carcinoma

(RTTNews) - Novartis (NVS) said that the US Food and Drug Administration has approved Odomzo (sonidegib, formerly LDE225) 200 mg capsules for the treatment of adult patients with locally advanced basal cell carcinoma (laBCC) that has recurred following surgery or radiation therapy, or those who are not candidates for surgery or radiation therapy.

"The FDA approval of Odomzo offers a new and non-invasive treatment option for a potentially devastating disease that is hard to treat and can be disfiguring. Odomzo is an important addition to our growing portfolio of targeted treatments for advanced skin cancers and underscores our commitment to developing and bringing to market new options for patients,"said Bruno Strigini, President, Novartis Oncology.

The Odomzo approval was based on the demonstration of a durable objective response rate (ORR) in an international, multi-center, double-blind, randomized, two-arm, non-comparative trial in patients with laBCC not amenable to local therapy or metastatic basal cell carcinoma (mBCC).

Odomzo was approved in Switzerland for the treatment of advanced BCC that is not amenable to curative surgery or radiotherapy on June 30, 2015. The CHMP granted a positive opinion on June 25, 2015. Additional regulatory submissions are being reviewed by health authorities worldwide.