FDA Approves Sanofi Genzyme’s New Treatment for Pompe Disease

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Sanofi Genzyme’s Nexviazyme for intravenous infusion to treat patients 1 year of age and older with late-onset Pompe disease.

Patients with Pompe disease have an enzyme deficiency that leads to the accumulation of a complex sugar, called glycogen, in skeletal and heart muscles, which cause muscle weakness and premature death from respiratory or heart failure. Normally, glycogen—the stored form of glucose—breaks down to release glucose into the bloodstream to be used as fuel for the cells.

Pompe disease affects an estimated 3,500 people in the United States and can present as infantile-onset Pompe disease, the most severe form of Pompe disease with rapid onset in infancy, and late-onset Pompe disease, which progressively damages muscles over time. LOPD symptoms may present at any age. However, due to the wide spectrum of clinical presentations and progressive nature of the disease, it can take seven to nine years before patients receive an accurate diagnosis. As the disease progresses, people with LOPD may require mechanical ventilation to help with breathing or a wheelchair to assist with mobility.

“Pompe disease is a rare genetic disease that causes premature death and has a debilitating effect on people’s lives,” said Janet Maynard, deputy director of the Office of Rare Diseases, Pediatrics, Urologic and Reproductive Medicine in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “Today’s approval brings patients with Pompe disease another enzyme replacement therapy option for this rare disease. The FDA will continue to work with stakeholders to advance the development of additional new, effective and safe therapies for rare diseases, including Pompe disease.”

Nexviazyme is an intraveneously administered enzyme replacement therapy designed to specifically target the mannose-6-phosphate (M6P) receptor, the key pathway for cellular uptake of enzyme replacement therapy in Pompe disease. It is an improvement on the company’s best-selling Pompe treatment Lumizyme, marketed since 2006. The effectiveness of Nexviazyme was demonstrated in a study of 100 patients who were randomized to take Nexviazyme or another FDA-approved enzyme replacement therapy for Pompe disease. Treatment with Nexviazyme improved lung function similar to the improvement seen with the other therapy.

The most common side effects included headache, fatigue, diarrhea, nausea, joint pain (arthralgia), dizziness, muscle pain (myalgia), itching (pruritus), vomiting, difficulty breathing (dyspnea), skin redness (erythema), feeling of “pins and needles” (paresthesia) and skin welts (urticaria). Serious reactions included hypersensitivity reactions like anaphylaxis and infusion-associated reactions, including respiratory distress, chills and raised body temperature (pyrexia). Patients susceptible to fluid volume overload or with compromised cardiac or respiratory function may be at risk for serious acute cardiorespiratory failure.

The FDA granted this application Fast Track, Priority Review, and Breakthrough Therapy designations. Nexviazyme also received an orphan drug designation, which provides incentives to assist and encourage the development of drugs for rare diseases.

Author: Rare Daily Staff