U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Tabrecta (capmatinib) for the treatment of adult patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that has spread to other parts of the body. Tabrecta is the first FDA-approved therapy to treat NSCLC with specific mutations (those that lead to mesenchymal-epithelial transition or MET exon 14 skipping).
The FDA also approved the FoundationOne CDx assay (F1CDx) as a companion diagnostic for Tabrecta today. Most patients had tumor samples that were tested for mutations that lead to MET exon 14 skipping using local tests and confirmed with the F1CDx, which is a next-generation sequencing based in vitro diagnostic device that is capable of detecting several mutations, including mutations that lead to MET exon 14 skipping.
NSCLC is a disease in which malignant cancer cells form in the tissues of the lung. It is the most common type of lung cancer with up to 90% of all lung carcinomas falling into the non-small cell category. NSCLC occurs when healthy cells become abnormal and grow rapidly. One danger of this form of cancer is that there’s a high likelihood that the cancer cells will spread from the lungs to other organs and body parts. Cancer metastasis consists of a sequential series of events, and MET exon 14 skipping is recognized as a critical event for metastasis of carcinomas. Mutations leading to MET exon 14 skipping are found in 3-4% of patients with lung cancer.
Tabrecta is a kinase inhibitor, meaning it functions by blocking a key enzyme that results in helping to stop the tumor cells from growing. The FDA approved Tabrecta based on the results of a clinical trial involving patients with NSCLC with mutations that lead to MET exon 14 skipping, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) wild-type and anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) negative status, and at least one measurable lesion.
Tabrecta may cause harm to a developing fetus or newborn baby. Health care professionals should advise pregnant women of this risk and should advise both females of reproductive potential and male patients with female partners of reproductive potential to use effective contraception during treatment with Tabrecta and for one week after the last dose.
The FDA granted approval of Tabrecta to Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation. The approval of the F1CDx companion diagnostic was granted to Foundation Medicine, Inc.
