THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) — Biotech drugmaker Amgen Inc. said Friday a European committee has endorsed additional uses for its cancer treatment Vectibix in patients with advanced colorectal cancer.
The Thousand Oaks company said the European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use recommended that Vectibix be approved for use in the European Union as both first- and second-line treatments when combined with two different chemotherapy regimens.
The European Commission, which approves medicines for the European Union, usually makes a decision on these recommendations in two or three months.
Vectibix is already approved in the EU as a stand-alone treatment for some late-stage colorectal cancer patients when chemotherapy no longer works. In March, the committee recommended against approving the additional uses, but Amgen asked the European Medicines Agency to re-examine the decision.
Shares of Amgen fell 89 cents to $57.04 in trading Friday, while broader trading indexes dropped 1 percent or more.