FDA Approves Belumosudil for Graft-Versus-Host Disease

The FDA approved daratumumab and hyaluronidase-fihj (Darzalex Faspro, Janssen Biotech, Inc.) in combination with pomalidomide and dexamethasone for adult patients with multiple myeloma who have received at least one prior line of therapy including lenalidomide and a proteasome inhibitor.

Efficacy was evaluated in APOLLO (NCT03180736), an open-label, active-controlled trial with 304 patients randomized (1:1) to Darzalex Faspro with pomalidomide and dexamethasone (Pd) vs Pd alone. Patients received Darzalex Faspro 1,800 mg/30,000 units (1,800 mg daratumumab and 30,000 units hyaluronidase) administered subcutaneously once weekly from Weeks 1 to 8, once every 2 weeks from Weeks 9 to 24 and once every 4 weeks starting with Week 25 until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity with pomalidomide 4 mg once daily orally on days 1-21 of each 28-day cycle; and dexamethasone 40 mg per week (or a reduced dose of 20 mg per week for patients >75 years).

The main efficacy outcome measure was progression-free survival (PFS). The median PFS was 12.4 months in the Darzalex Faspro-Pd treatment group and 6.9 months in the Pd treatment group (HR 0.63; 95% CI: 0.47, 0.85; p=0.0018), representing a 37% reduction in the risk of disease progression or death for patients treated with Darzalex Faspro-Pd versus Pd.

The most common adverse reactions (≥20%) in patients with multiple myeloma who received Darzalex Faspro-Pd are fatigue, pneumonia, upper respiratory tract infection, and diarrhea.

The recommended dosage of Darzalex Faspro is 1,800 mg/30,000 units (1,800 mg daratumumab and 30,000 units hyaluronidase) administered subcutaneously into the abdomen over approximately 3 to 5 minutes according to the recommended schedule.