FDA Approves New Cancer Drug

The Food and Drug Administration announced Thursday it had approved the first drug for treatment of a rare type of cancer known as malignant pleural mesothelioma.

The drug, pemetraxed disodium, is used in combination with cisplatin, the agency said.

Sold under the trade name Alimta, the newly approved drug received priority review as an orphan drug, FDA said.

Only about 2,000 new cases are diagnosed annually of this cancer, which occurs in the mesothelium, a membrane that covers and protects most of the internal organs of the body. This form of cancer is usually associated with a history of asbestos exposure. Asbestos fibers lodged in the lung attach to the outer lung lining and chest wall, causing tumors to grow, the agency said.

By the time symptoms appear, the disease is usually advanced, and patients live, on average, nine to thirteen months following diagnosis.

Alimta will be distributed by Eli Lily and Company, Indianapolis, Ind.