On January 12, 2021 MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; Prime Standard Segment; MDAX & TecDAX; NASDAQ:MOR) and Incyte (NASDAQ: INCY) reported that Health Canada has accepted the New Drug Submission (NDS) for tafasitamab, an anti-CD19 antibody (Press release, MorphoSys, JAN 12, 2021, View Source [SID1234573909]). The application seeks approval of tafasitamab in combination with lenalidomide, followed by tafasitamab monotherapy, for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), including DLBCL arising from low grade lymphoma, who are not eligible for, or refuse, autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT).
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"With the acceptance of the NDS by Health Canada, review of the data can begin, an important step on the path to making tafasitamab available in Canada for use in combination with lenalidomide in eligible patients with relapsed or refractory DLBCL," said Josée Brisebois, Ph.D., Head of Medical Affairs, Incyte Biosciences Canada. "We intend to work closely with Health Canada as we seek to bring this innovative targeted therapeutic option to the clinical community and to appropriate patients for whom few treatment options exist."
"This important milestone moves tafasitamab in combination with lenalidomide into the regulatory review process in Canada, with the potential to significantly advance patient care in the treatment of relapsed or refractory DLBCL," said Nuwan Kurukulasuriya, Ph.D., Senior Vice President Global Medical Affairs, MorphoSys.
The NDS, submitted by Incyte, is based on data from the L-MIND study evaluating tafasitamab in combination with lenalidomide as a treatment for patients with relapsed or refractory DLBCL not eligible for autologous stem cell transplant, and is supported by the RE-MIND study, an observational retrospective study in relapsed or refractory DLBCL.
Incyte has exclusive commercialization rights for tafasitamab outside of the United States and, if approved, Incyte will hold the marketing authorization for tafasitamab in Canada. This NDS marks the second marketing application that Incyte Biosciences Canada has made to Health Canada since establishing operations in Canada in April 2020.
About Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma (DLBCL)
DLBCL is the most common type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma in adults worldwide1, characterized by rapidly growing masses of malignant B-cells in the lymph nodes, spleen, liver, bone marrow or other organs. It is an aggressive disease with about 40% of patients not responding to initial therapy or relapsing thereafter2, leading to a high medical need for new, effective therapies3, especially for patients who are not eligible for an autologous stem cell transplant in this setting.
About L-MIND
The L-MIND trial is a single arm, open-label, multicenter Phase 2 study (NCT02399085) investigating the combination of tafasitamab and lenalidomide in patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) who have had at least one, but no more than three prior lines of therapy, including an anti-CD20 targeting therapy (e.g. rituximab), who are not eligible for high-dose chemotherapy or refuse subsequent autologous stem cell transplant. The study’s primary endpoint is Overall Response Rate (ORR). Secondary outcome measures include Duration of Response (DoR), Progression-Free Survival (PFS) and Overall Survival (OS). In May 2019, the study reached its primary completion.
For more information about L-MIND, visit View Source
About RE-MIND
RE-MIND, an observational retrospective study (NCT04150328), was designed to isolate the contribution of tafasitamab in combination with lenalidomide and to prove the combinatorial effect. The study compares real-world response data of patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) who received lenalidomide monotherapy with the efficacy outcomes of the tafasitamab-lenalidomide combination, as investigated in MorphoSys’ L-MIND trial. RE-MIND collected the efficacy data from 490 relapsed or refractory DLBCL patients in the U.S. and EU. Qualification criteria for matching patients of both studies were pre-specified. As a result, 76 eligible RE-MIND patients were identified and matched 1:1 to 76 of 80 L-MIND patients based on important baseline characteristics. Objective Response Rates (ORR) were validated based on this subset of 76 patients in RE-MIND and L-MIND, respectively. The primary endpoint of RE-MIND was met and shows a statistically significant superior best ORR of the tafasitamab-lenalidomide combination compared to lenalidomide monotherapy.
For more information about RE-MIND, visit View Source
About Tafasitamab
Tafasitamab is a humanized Fc-modified cytolytic CD19 targeting monoclonal antibody. In 2010, MorphoSys licensed exclusive worldwide rights to develop and commercialize tafasitamab from Xencor, Inc. Tafasitamab incorporates an XmAb(R) engineered Fc domain, which mediates B-cell lysis through apoptosis and immune effector mechanism including Antibody-Dependent Cell-Mediated Cytotoxicity (ADCC) and Antibody-Dependent Cellular Phagocytosis (ADCP). In January 2020, MorphoSys and Incyte entered into a collaboration and licensing agreement to further develop and commercialize tafasitamab globally. Following approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in July 2020, tafasitamab is being co-commercialized by MorphoSys and Incyte in the United States. Incyte has exclusive commercialization rights outside the United States.
Tafasitamab is being clinically investigated as a therapeutic option in B-cell malignancies in a number of ongoing combination trials.
XmAb(R) is a registered trademark of Xencor, Inc.
The safety and efficacy of tafasitamab is under review and the market authorization in Canada has not yet been obtained.