After receiving a complete response letter (CRL) in 2023 related to device issues, North Chicago-based Abbvie Inc. received another CRL for ABBV-951 (foscarbidopa/foslevodopa) for treating motor fluctuations in advanced Parkinson’s disease, this time for issues at a third-party manufacturer.
The week began with PDUFA-delaying news for Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. The company said it received two complete response letters (CRLs) from the U.S. FDA regarding the priority BLA for its bispecific antibody to treat lymphoma, odronextamab.
The good news is that the U.S. FDA’s complete response letter (CRL) for Venatorx Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s intravenous antibiotic combination, cefepime-taniborbactam, in complicated urinary tract infections (cUTIs) requested no additional clinical testing. The bad news is the inevitable delay for a drug Venatorx and partner Melinta Therapeutics Inc. are aiming to position as a much-needed option for the fight against drug-resistant gram-negative infections.
The U.S. FDA issued a complete response letter to Shin Nippon Biomedical Laboratories Ltd.’s U.S. subsidiary, Satsuma Pharmaceuticals Inc., for its NDA for dihydroergotamine nasal powder (STS-101) for acute treatment of migraine, with or without aura, in adults. Shin Nippon acquired Satsuma for $220 million in April 2023 and gained rights to STS-101.
The U.S. FDA issued a complete response letter to Shin Nippon Biomedical Laboratories Ltd.’s U.S. subsidiary, Satsuma Pharmaceuticals Inc., for its NDA for dihydroergotamine nasal powder (STS-101) for acute treatment of migraine, with or without aura, in adults. Shin Nippon acquired Satsuma for $220 million in April 2023 and gained rights to STS-101.
Receiving a second complete response letter (CRL) from the U.S. FDA for gefapixant to treat refractory and unexplained chronic cough – an indication for which there are no approved treatments in the U.S., Merck & Co. Inc. said it is reviewing the agency’s feedback to determine the next steps, if any, for the oral selective P2X3 receptor antagonist.
Shares of Checkpoint Therapeutics Inc. dropped 44.8% Dec. 18 on news that the U.S. FDA issued a complete response letter (CRL), delaying potential approval of PD-L1 antibody cosibelimab in metastatic or locally advanced cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma. The FDA had accepted in March the BLA, seeking use for treating patients who are not candidates for curative surgery or radiation, setting a Jan. 3, 2024, PDUFA date.
Following an unexpected FDA complete response letter (CRL), Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. said it will no longer pursue an expanded indication for Onpattro (patisiran) in the U.S. The RNAi therapeutic was approved in 2018 to treat polyneuropathy of hereditary transthyretin-mediated (ATTR) amyloidosis and seemed well on its way to snagging a second U.S. indication after the FDA’s Cardiovascular and Renal Drugs Advisory Committee voted 9-3 in September that the drug’s benefits outweighed its risks as a treatment for cardiomyopathy of ATTR amyloidosis. The FDA disagreed with the committee, saying in the CRL that patisiran’s clinical meaningfulness had not been established in the proposed indication.
Shares of ARS Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:SPRY) plummeted 55.8% Sept. 20 on word that the U.S. FDA issued a complete response letter (CRL) for Neffy, despite receiving a recommendation for approval in May from the agency’s advisory committee (adcom) and following a three-month delay in action.
While the U.S. FDA didn’t ask for more study data or have safety or efficacy concerns, it does want modifications to Alexion, Astrazeneca Rare Disease’s sBLA for Ultomiris (ravulizumab-cwvz) to treat adults with the rare central nervous system disease neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder. The agency has issued a complete response letter (CRL) requesting changes to Ultomiris’ Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) to better validate patients’ meningococcal vaccination status or prophylactic administration of antibiotics before being treated.
