FDA has announced it has approved Zaltrap (ziv-aflibercept) for use in combination with a FOLFIRI (folinic acid, fluorouracil and irinotecan) chemotherapy regimen to treat adults with colorectal cancer, according to a news release.
Zaltrap is an angiogenesis inhibitor that inhibits the blood supply to tumors. It is intended for patients with metastatic cancer and whose tumors are resistant to or progressed after an oxaliplatin-containing chemotherapy regimen.
"This approval demonstrates the benefits of adding a biological agent, Zaltrap, to a commonly used chemotherapy drug regimen, FOLFIRI," said Richard Pazdur, MD, director of the Office of Hematology and Oncology Products in the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, in the release. "An improvement in median survival time was noted with the addition of Zaltrap to FOLFIRI, accompanied by an improvement in response rate and a delay in tumor progression and growth."
Zaltrap is manufactured by Bridgewater, N.J.-based sanofi-aventis.
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