Treatment for Acute Myeloid Leukemia

U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Accepts for Priority Review Bristol Myers Squibb’s Application for CC-486 for Maintenance Treatment of Adult Patients in Remission with Acute Myeloid Leukemia

PRINCETON, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE) May 1, 2020 –Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted its New Drug Application (NDA) for CC-486, an investigational oral hypomethylating agent, for the maintenance treatment of adult patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), who achieved complete remission (CR) or CR with incomplete blood count recovery (CRi), following induction therapy with or without consolidation treatment, and who are not candidates for, or who choose not to proceed to, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. The FDA granted the application Priority Review and set a Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) goal date of September 3, 2020.

The NDA submission was based on the efficacy and safety results of the pivotal Phase 3 QUAZAR® AML-001 study, which met the primary endpoint of improved overall survival for patients receiving AML maintenance treatment with CC-486 versus placebo.

“Often, newly diagnosed adult patients with AML achieve a complete response with induction therapy, however many patients will relapse and experience a poor outcome. Patients in remission are seeking treatment options that decrease the likelihood of relapse and extend overall survival,” said Noah Berkowitz, M.D., Ph.D., senior vice president, Global Clinical Development, Hematology, Bristol Myers Squibb. “Today’s acceptance of our submission for CC-486 represents an important step towards a potential new maintenance treatment to address an urgent medical need for AML patients and we look forward to working with the FDA during its review of CC-486.”

CC-486 is an investigational therapy that is not approved for any use in any country.

About CC-486

CC-486 is an oral hypomethylating agent that incorporates into DNA and RNA. The main mechanism of action is thought to be hypomethylation of DNA, as well as direct cytotoxicity to abnormal hematopoietic cells in the bone marrow. Hypomethylation may restore normal function to genes that are critical for differentiation and proliferation. Oral dosing of CC-486 allows for extended drug exposure during each treatment cycle to prolong therapeutic activity.1

About QUAZAR AML-001

QUAZAR AML-001 is a Phase 3, international, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of CC-486 as AML maintenance therapy in patients who achieved first complete remission (CR) or complete remission with incomplete blood count recovery (CRi) following intensive induction chemotherapy (with or without consolidation), who were ineligible for hematopoietic stem cell transplant. The primary endpoint of the study was overall survival. Key secondary endpoints included relapse-free survival (RFS), safety and tolerability, healthcare resource utilization and patient-reported outcomes per the FACIT-Fatigue Scale and EQ-5D questionnaire. The study enrolled 472 patients, randomized 1:1 to receive initially either 300 mg of CC-486 or placebo orally, once daily, for 14 days of a 28-day cycle, plus best supportive care. Patients remained on treatment until unacceptable toxicity or disease progression.

About AML

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is the most common type of acute leukemia. AML starts in the bone marrow but moves quickly into the blood. Unlike in normal blood cell development, in AML, the rapid buildup of abnormal white blood cells in the bone marrow may interfere with the production of normal blood cells, resulting in decreased healthy white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets. AML is a complex, diverse disease associated with multiple genetic mutations and usually worsens quickly and can lead to death if not treated. AML has a high relapse rate, meaning following patients’ initial response to treatment, their disease is likely to return, signifying an unmet need for maintenance therapy options. There will be an estimated 21,450 new cases of AML in the United States this year, accounting for 1.2% of all cancer cases, with an estimated 10,920 deaths resulting from the disease. There are an estimated 61,048 people living with AML in the United States.

Bristol Myers Squibb: Advancing Oncology Research

At Bristol Myers Squibb, patients are at the center of everything we do. The goal of our cancer research is to increase patients’ quality of life, long-term survival and make cure a possibility. Through a unique multidisciplinary approach powered by translational science, we harness our deep scientific experience in oncology and Immuno-Oncology (I-O) research to identify novel treatments tailored to individual patient needs. Our researchers are developing a diverse, purposefully built pipeline designed to target different immune system pathways and address the complex and specific interactions between the tumor, its microenvironment and the immune system. We source innovation internally, and in collaboration with academia, government, advocacy groups and biotechnology companies, to help make the promise of transformational medicines, like I-O, a reality for patients.

About Bristol Myers Squibb

Bristol Myers Squibb is a global biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines that help patients prevail over serious diseases. For more information about Bristol Myers Squibb, visit us at BMS.com or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and Instagram.

Celgene and Juno Therapeutics are wholly owned subsidiaries of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company. In certain countries outside the U.S., due to local laws, Celgene and Juno Therapeutics are referred to as, Celgene, a Bristol-Myers Squibb Company and Juno Therapeutics, a Bristol-Myers Squibb Company.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding, among other things, the research, development and commercialization of pharmaceutical products. All statements that are not statements of historical facts are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on historical performance and current expectations and projections about our future financial results, goals, plans and objectives and involve inherent risks, assumptions and uncertainties, including internal or external factors that could delay, divert or change any of them in the next several years, that are difficult to predict, may be beyond our control and could cause our future financial results, goals, plans and objectives to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, the statements. These risks, assumptions, uncertainties and other factors include, among others, that CC-486 may not receive regulatory approval for the indication described in this release in the currently anticipated timeline or at all and, if approved, whether such product candidate for such additional indication described in this release will be commercially successful. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed. Forward-looking statements in this press release should be evaluated together with the many risks and uncertainties that affect Bristol Myers Squibb’s business and market, particularly those identified in the cautionary statement and risk factors discussion in Bristol Myers Squibb’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, as updated by our subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The forward-looking statements included in this document are made only as of the date of this document and except as otherwise required by applicable law, Bristol Myers Squibb undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, changed circumstances or otherwise.

1 Garcia-Manero et al. J Clin Oncol. 2011;29(18):2521–7. 2.Lailleet al. PLoS One. 2015;10(8):e0135520

Posted: May 2020

CC-486 (azacitidine) FDA Approval History