The Ministery of Food and Drug Safety said on the 1st that it approved the immuno-oncology drug "Seoplumab (ingredient name seoplumimab)" for first-line treatment of small cell lung cancer that has spread to other areas.
Seoplumab was co-developed by Alvogen Korea and China's Henlius Biotech, and is used with the anticancer drugs carboplatin and etoposide.
Lung cancer is classified into small cell lung cancer, in which the cancer cells are small, and Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for 80%–85% of all lung cancers, while small cell lung cancer is a relatively rare type. Small cell lung cancer is a cancer that arises from neuroendocrine cells in the lungs and is characterized by rapid growth and a tendency to spread easily to other organs.
Seoplumab binds to PD-1, a protein on the surface of T cells, which are immune cells, and blocks its interaction with PD-L1 and PD-L2 that cancer cells use to evade immune attack. This helps reactivate T cells to attack cancer cells.
The Ministery of Food and Drug Safety said it expects the approval to increase treatment options available to patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer. It also said it will continue to swiftly supply new treatments to broaden patients' treatment opportunities.