Astellas pulls EU filing for avacincaptad pegol

Japanese drugmaker Astellas Pharma (TYO: 4503) revealed it has decided to withdraw its marketing authorization application from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for avacincaptad pegol intravitreal solution (ACP), an investigational synthetic aptamer that inhibits the complement C5 protein, for the treatment of geographic atrophy (GA) secondary to age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

The company's decision to withdraw its application followed interactions with the EMA’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP).

Astellas stressed its belief that the clinically meaningful benefit of ACP in slowing GA lesion growth outweighs the risks and remains confident in ACP’s clinical profile and believes its capacity to slow disease is a benefit for people living with GA.