FDA Grants Fast Track Designation To Bayer's Investigational Compound Regorafenib For The Treatment Of Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors

Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced that its investigational compound regorafenib (BAY 73-4506) has been granted Fast Track designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of patients with metastatic and/or unresectable gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) whose disease has progressed despite at least imatinib and sunitinib as prior treatments.

Regorafenib is an investigational agent and is not approved by the FDA, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) or other Health Authorities.

"There is an unmet medical need for this specific patient population," said Kemal Malik, MD, Head of Global Development and member of the Bayer HealthCare Executive Committee. "This milestone is an important step in the overall development of regorafenib."

In January, Bayer began enrolling patients in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase III study of regorafenib plus best supportive care versus placebo plus best supportive care for subjects with metastatic and/or unresectable gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) whose disease has progressed despite prior treatment with at least imatinib and sunitinib (NCT01271712). The trial is estimated to enroll 170 patients, who will be randomized in a 2:1 ratio to receive either regorafenib or placebo. Subjects receiving placebo who experience disease progression may be offered open-label regorafenib treatment (cross-over option).

The primary endpoint of this trial is progression-free survival (PFS), and secondary endpoints include overall survival (OS), time to progression (TTP), disease control rate (DCR), tumor response rate (RR), duration of response (DOR), and safety. All patients will enter the Survival Follow-Up Period upon discontinuation of study treatment, during which assessment of survival status will be performed.

Source: Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Inc