Special designation for Daiichi Sankyo's DS-8201 from Japan MHLW

27 March 2018

Daiichi Sankyo (TYO: 4568) today announced that DS-8201, an investigational HER2-targeting antibody drug conjugate (ADC), has received SAKIGAKE designation for the treatment of HER2-positive advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction cancer by the Japan Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW).

The news pushed the Japanese pharma major’s shares 1.85% higher to 3,586 yen by close of trading today.

“There are no HER2-targeting treatment options currently available for patients with HER2-positive gastric cancer whose tumors are no longer controlled by trastuzumab,” said Koichi Akahane, executive officer, head of Oncology Function, R&D Division, Daiichi Sankyo. “We look forward to working closely with the Japan Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare under the terms of the SAKIGAKE program to accelerate the development of DS-8201 particularly since Japan has one of the highest incidence rates of gastric cancer worldwide.”

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