From CNBC: 2024-09-14 08:45:01

Pfizer’s drug for cancer cachexia, a condition causing weight loss in cancer patients, showed positive results in a midstage trial. The monoclonal antibody, ponsegromab, led to improvements in body weight, muscle mass, and quality of life in patients. The drug could become the first approved treatment in the U.S. for cancer cachexia, affecting 9 million people globally.

The phase two trial followed 187 people with non-small cell lung cancer, pancreatic cancer, or colorectal cancer and high levels of GDF-15. Patients who took the highest dose of ponsegromab saw a 5.6% weight increase compared to a placebo. Pfizer is discussing late-stage development plans and aims to start studies in 2025 for approval.

Pfizer’s drug aims to reduce GDF-15 levels to improve appetite and weight maintenance in cancer patients with cachexia. The company is also studying ponsegromab in heart failure patients, another group affected by cachexia. The drug showed no significant side effects, and Pfizer hopes for regulatory approval and future successful trials.



Read more at CNBC: Pfizer’s cancer cachexia drug shows positive midstage trial results