China News Service, Guangzhou, March 17 (Cai Minjie, Zuo Jiaolei) Novartis (China) announced on the 17th that capmatinib, a drug for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer, has recently been included in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. The second batch of catalogs was approved for use in Guangzhou Modern Hospital.
This move allows patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer with MET exon 14 (METex14) skipping mutation in the Greater Bay Area and even the whole country to simultaneously use high-quality drugs that have been marketed in Hong Kong and Macau.
The "Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Drug and Medical Device Supervision and Innovation Development Work Plan" proposes that designated medical institutions operating in 9 mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area use drugs that are urgently needed clinically and that have been marketed in Hong Kong and Macau, and that public hospitals in Hong Kong and Macau have urgently needed clinically needed drugs. Procurement and use of medical devices with advanced clinical application.
This policy provides favorable policy support for residents in the Greater Bay Area and the whole country to seek medical treatment, and gradually provides patients with medical conditions that are similar to those in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau. It is an important part of the development of medical integration and integration in the Greater Bay Area.
In January 2021, the pilot program of the "Hong Kong-Macao Medicine-Machine-Link" policy will be launched at the Shenzhen Hospital of the University of Hong Kong, and 9 imported drugs and 2 medical devices are urgently needed to be approved for clinical use.
On August 27 of the same year, the policy of "Hong Kong-Macao Pharmaceutical Machinery" was expanded and implemented in the mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area, and the first batch of 5 medical institutions was established.
On February 18, 2022, the Guangdong Provincial Drug Administration and the Guangdong Provincial Health and Health Commission released the second batch of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area clinically urgently needed import of medicines and medical devices from Hong Kong and Macao. There are 6 types of drugs including Buccilizumab, Capmatinib, Erdatinib Tablets, Budesonide Sustained-Release Capsules, Hydroxocobalamin for Injection, and 1 cell sorting/processing system for medical devices.
Relevant studies have shown that many lung cancers are associated with METex14 (METex14) skipping mutations and EGFR, ALK, HER2 and other gene mutations.
Among them, the mutation rate of METex14 skipping mutation in advanced non-small cell lung cancer is about 3% to 4%.
"At this stage, traditional treatment methods for METex14 non-small cell lung cancer in my country include chemotherapy, multi-target tyrosine kinase inhibitors, and immunotherapy, but the benefits for patients are limited. It is a more effective treatment method.” Professor Liu Junling, Department of Medical Oncology, Sun Yat-Sen University Cancer Hospital, said that capmatinib has been recommended by the international guidelines for lung cancer for the full-line treatment of METex14 exon skipping non-small cell lung cancer. Here comes a new clinical solution.
It is good news that the Greater Bay Area can be introduced this time, so that the majority of patients can use innovative drugs more conveniently.
"
According to Liu Junling, the study results showed that the effective rates of capmatinib in the treatment of METex14 skipping mutation advanced non-small cell lung cancer patients were 66.7% and 44%, respectively, and the median overall survival time was 20.8 months and 13.6 months. moon.
(over)