Double first approval for Lenvima in China

5 September 2018

There was a double first for Japanese pharma major Eisai (TYO: 4523), with the first approval of its cancer drug Lenvima (lenvatinib) in China as well as being the first new therapy for first-line treatment of unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in China.

The China National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) approved the kinase inhibitor as a single agent for the treatment of patients with unresectable HCC who have not received prior systemic therapy

The drug is partnered in the USA with pharma giant Merck & Co (NYSE: MRK). The two firms are working together after Merck paid $300 million, with the potential for more than $5 billion in milestones, for certain development and commercialization rights in respect of Lenvima, which was first approved in the USA as a treatment for thyroid cancer in 2015, and is approved to treat this type of cancer in over 50 countries.

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