AstraZeneca announced that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP), the scientific advisory committee of the European Medicines Agency (EMEA), has issued a positive opinion supporting approval of the targeted oral anti-cancer drug, Iressa (gefitinib).

The CHMP has recommended the approval of Iressa for adults with locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with activating mutations of EGFR-TK (epidermal growth factor receptor-tyrosine kinase), in all lines of therapy.

Iressa acts by inhibiting the tyrosine kinase enzyme in the EGFR, thus blocking the transmission of signals involved in the growth and spread of tumours. A mutation in the EGFR is a characteristic occurring in 10 to 15 per cent of lung cancers in Europe, and studies have shown that these types of tumours are particularly sensitive to Iressa. There are approximately 106,000 new cases of advanced lung cancer in Europe (top 5 countries) per year.

Anders Ekblom, executive vice president for Development at AstraZeneca, said, "Today's positive CHMP opinion on Iressa is an important step towards addressing the great unmet medical need of lung cancer patients in Europe, and supports AstraZeneca's personalised healthcare strategy to develop the right medicine for the right patient. If Iressa is approved, for the first time patients with these types of tumours will have a better alternative to chemotherapy as a first-line treatment."

The CHMP opinion is based on a submission package including two pivotal phase-III studies, Ipass and Interest.

The Ipass study exceeded its primary objective, demonstrating superior progression-free survival (PFS, the time a patient lives without their cancer progressing), greater objective response rate (ORR, tumour shrinkage), improved tolerability and significant quality of life benefits for Iressa compared to carboplatin/paclitaxel doublet chemotherapy in clinically selected first-line patients in Asia. The Interest study met its primary objective, demonstrating equivalent overall survival (OS) and significant quality of life benefits for IRESSA compared to standard chemotherapy (docetaxel) in the pre-treated setting.

The CHMP positive opinion is now referred for final action to the European Commission, which grants marketing approval in the European Union.

Iressa is already an established therapy for pre-treated NSCLC in the Asia-Pacific region, where AstraZeneca is in consultation with regulatory authorities to discuss the potential use of Iressa in first-line therapy.