Red blood cells
Amgen has withdrawn its application to expand the existing marketing authorization for darbepoetin alfa (Aranesp), according to the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP).
The goal with this application was to extend the authorization for darbepoetin alfa to include the treatment of anemia in adults with low-risk or intermediate-1-risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) who have low transfusion demand.
Darbepoetin alfa is currently approved in the European Union (EU) to treat anemia in adults and children with chronic renal failure and adults who are receiving chemotherapy for non-myeloid malignancies.
Amgen withdrew the application for darbepoetin alfa in MDS patients after the CHMP had evaluated initial documentation provided by the company and formulated a list of questions. Amgen had not yet responded to the questions when it notified the CHMP of the withdrawal.
At the time of the withdrawal, the CHMP was of the provisional opinion that darbepoetin alfa could not have been approved for the treatment of anemia in adults with MDS.
This opinion was based on concerns about the data supporting the application—results from the phase 3 ARCADE trial (NCT01362140) and a phase 2 trial (NCT00095264).
The CHMP said changes to the design of the phase 3 trial and the exclusion of a high number of patients from the analysis of the results raise questions about the validity of the data.
In addition, the phase 2 trial, which was conducted in the US, was not in line with EU recommendations for the treatment of MDS patients.
Therefore, at the time of the withdrawal, the CHMP had decided the marketing authorization could not be expanded based on the data provided.
In a letter to the CHMP, Amgen said its decision to withdraw the application is based on the CHMP’s negative opinion.