Boehringer widens IPF drug’s reach
pharmafile | May 18, 2015 | News story | Sales and Marketing | Boehringer, Esbriet, ats, brett wells, nintedanib, ofev
Boehringer Ingelheim has highlighted new data for its idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) treatment Ofev in a Phase II study on a broader range of patients.
The German firm presented its findings in the US at the American Thoracic Society, with analyses outlining the efficacy and safety of Ofev (nintedanib) for the treatment of IPF beyond 52 weeks and for distinct subgroups.
“As IPF is a life-threatening and progressive disease, patients will be on life-long treatment to manage their disease. It is important to assess and continue to monitor the efficacy and safety of Ofev in these patients,” says Professor Bruno Crestani from the Paris Diderot University School of Medicine in France.
IPF is a fatal lung disease with a median survival of 2–3 years following diagnosis. It causes progressive scarring of the lungs, resulting in continual and irreversible deterioration in lung function and difficulty breathing.
Boehringer launched Ofev in the EU in March in its currently approved setting, seeing the firm go head-to-head with Roche’s Esbriet (pirfenidone) – the only drug approved by NICE for use as a treatment for IPF on the NHS.
These latest results back up its assertion that it was seeking further indications for its promising drug, as it is also being looked at in studies for ovarian, colorectal, kidney and liver cancer – and mesothelioma.
It has received a positive opinion from the EMA for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer in combination with docetaxel, following evidence that together the drugs can increase overall survival in patients by more than a year.
Pleased with the findings from this latest IPF study setting however, was Dr Martin Kolb, a respiratory division director at McMaster University in Canada: “The unique data from post-hoc subgroup analyses from the pooled Inpulsis clinical trials demonstrate a consistent effect of Ofev in patients with different degrees of lung function impairment and patients with different radiologic patterns in imaging tests at baseline.
He says the results presented highlight the importance of early detection and timely treatment of patients with IPF, and that in addition, the data presented at the conference includes a wide range of patient types which are representative of patients seen in clinical practice.
Crestani adds: “These data strengthen the evidence supporting the efficacy, safety and tolerability of Ofev and further our understanding of treating this complex disease.”
Brett Wells
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