REGENERON PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.: FDA to Review EYLEA (aflibercept) Injection for the Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc issued the following announcement on Sept. 13.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: REGN) announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted for review the supplemental Biologics License Application (sBLA) of EYLEA® (aflibercept) Injection for the treatment of diabetic retinopathy (DR), the leading cause of vision loss for patients with diabetes. The target action date for the FDA decision is May 13, 2019.

The sBLA submission is based on results from the Phase 3 PANORAMA trial investigating EYLEA as a treatment for patients with moderately severe to severe non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR) without diabetic macular edema (DME). Positive six-month topline results from PANORAMA were announced in March 2018. One-year results from PANORAMA are expected to be shared later this year.

The safety and efficacy of the potential use of EYLEA in DR without DME has not been fully evaluated by any regulatory authority.

EYLEA is administered as a 2 mg intravitreal injection and currently indicated to treat wet age-related macular degeneration, macular edema following retinal vein occlusion, DME, and DR in patients with DME.

About Diabetic Retinopathy

Approximately eight million people live with DR, a disease characterized by microvascular damage to the blood vessels in the retina often caused by poor blood sugar control in people with diabetes. The disease generally starts as NPDR and often has no warning signs or symptoms. NPDR may progress to proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR), a stage of the disease in which abnormal blood vessels grow onto the surface of the retina and potentially cause severe, vision-threatening complications such as vitreous hemorrhage and traction retinal detachment.

DME can occur at any stage of DR as the blood vessels in the retina become increasingly fragile and leak fluid, potentially causing visual impairment. In the U.S., approximately 1.5 million adults are diagnosed with DME, while approximately 3.5 million people suffer from DR without DME.

About EYLEA® (aflibercept) Injection
EYLEA® (aflibercept) Injection is a vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitor formulated as an injection for the eye. It is designed to block the growth of new blood vessels and decrease the ability of fluid to pass through blood vessels (vascular permeability) in the eye by blocking VEGF-A and placental growth factor (PLGF), two growth factors involved in angiogenesis. In the U.S., EYLEA is the market-leading, FDA-approved anti-VEGF treatment for its approved indications and is supported by a robust body of research that includes seven pivotal Phase 3 trials.

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION FOR EYLEA® (aflibercept) INJECTION

• EYLEA® (aflibercept) Injection is contraindicated in patients with ocular or periocular infections, active intraocular inflammation, or known hypersensitivity to aflibercept or to any of the excipients in EYLEA.
• Intravitreal injections, including those with EYLEA, have been associated with endophthalmitis and retinal detachments. Proper aseptic injection technique must always be used when administering EYLEA. Patients should be instructed to report any symptoms suggestive of endophthalmitis or retinal detachment without delay and should be managed appropriately. Intraocular inflammation has been reported with the use of EYLEA.
• Acute increases in intraocular pressure have been seen within 60 minutes of intravitreal injection, including with EYLEA. Sustained increases in intraocular pressure have also been reported after repeated intravitreal dosing with VEGF inhibitors. Intraocular pressure and the perfusion of the optic nerve head should be monitored and managed appropriately.
• There is a potential risk of arterial thromboembolic events (ATEs) following intravitreal use of VEGF inhibitors, including EYLEA. ATEs are defined as nonfatal stroke, nonfatal myocardial infarction, or vascular death (including deaths of unknown cause). The incidence of reported thromboembolic events in wet AMD studies during the first year was 1.8% (32 out of 1824) in the combined group of patients treated with EYLEA compared with 1.5% (9 out of 595) in patients treated with ranibizumab; through 96 weeks, the incidence was 3.3% (60 out of 1824) in the EYLEA group compared with 3.2% (19 out of 595) in the ranibizumab group. The incidence in the DME studies from baseline to week 52 was 3.3% (19 out of 578) in the combined group of patients treated with EYLEA compared with 2.8% (8 out of 287) in the control group; from baseline to week 100, the incidence was 6.4% (37 out of 578) in the combined group of patients treated with EYLEA compared with 4.2% (12 out of 287) in the control group. There were no reported thromboembolic events in the patients treated with EYLEA in the first six months of the RVO studies.
• Serious adverse reactions related to the injection procedure have occurred in <0.1% of intravitreal injections with EYLEA including endophthalmitis and retinal detachment.
• The most common adverse reactions (≥5%) reported in patients receiving EYLEA were conjunctival hemorrhage, eye pain, cataract, vitreous detachment, vitreous floaters, and intraocular pressure increased.

INDICATIONS
EYLEA® (aflibercept) Injection is indicated for the treatment of patients with Neovascular (Wet) Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD), Macular Edema following Retinal Vein Occlusion (RVO), Diabetic Macular Edema (DME), and Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) in patients with DME.

Please visit www.EYLEA.us to see the full Prescribing Information for EYLEA.

Original source can be found here.