Business

Imfinzi approved in the US for bladder cancer

Imfinzi approved in the US for bladder cancer.

articleAstrazeneca PlcMarch 31, 20253/company/astrazeneca-plc/news/imfinzi-approved-in-the-us-for-bladder-cancer
Imfinzi approved in the US for bladder cancer

About this update from Astrazeneca Plc

[{"type":"text","content":"\n\n \n31 March 2025\n \nImfinzi approved in the US as first and only perioperative\nimmunotherapy for patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer\n \n Based on NIAGARA Phase III trial results which showed a 32% reduction in the risk of recurrence and a 25% reduction in the risk of death vs. neoadjuvant chemotherapy alone\n \nAstraZeneca's Imfinzi (durvalumab) in combination with gemcitabine and cisplatin as neoadjuvant treatment, followed by Imfinzi as adjuvant monotherapy after radical cystectomy (surgery to remove the bladder) has been approved in the US for the treatment of adult patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC).\n \nThe approval was granted by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) after securing Priority Review and was based on results from the NIAGARA Phase III trial which were presented during a Presidential Symposium at the 2024 European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress and simultaneously published in The New England Journal of Medicine.\n \nIn 2024, over 20,000 people in the US were treated for MIBC.1 Bladder cancer is considered muscle-invasive when there is evidence of the tumour invading the muscle wall of the bladder but no distant metastases.2 This represents a curative-intent setting, where the current standard of care is neoadjuvant chemotherapy and radical cystectomy.3 However, even after surgery, patients experience high rates of disease recurrence and have a poor prognosis.3\n \nMatthew ND. Galsky, Lillian and Howard Stratton Professor of Medicine, Director of Genitourinary Medical Oncology, The Tisch Cancer Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, and NIAGARA investigator and steering committee member, said: \"This approval for the durvalumab-based perioperative regimen is a major breakthrough for people with muscle-invasive bladder cancer, nearly half of whom see their cancer return despite chemotherapy and surgery with curative-intent. This durvalumab regimen significantly extended patients' lives in the NIAGARA trial and has the potential to transform care.\"\n \nDave Fredrickson, Executive Vice President, Oncology Haematology Business Unit, AstraZeneca, said: \"Today's approval for Imfinzi represents a paradigm shift, bringing the first perioperative immunotherapy to patie...

More updates from Astrazeneca Plc