On February 19, 2025 Boehringer Ingelheim reported that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Priority Review to its new drug application for zongertinib (BI 1810631) for the treatment of adult patients with unresectable or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose tumors have HER2 (ERBB2) mutations and who have received prior systemic therapy (Press release, Boehringer Ingelheim, FEB 19, 2025, View Source [SID1234650392]). The FDA grants Priority Review to applications for drugs that would offer significant improvements in the treatment, diagnosis, or prevention of serious conditions, with action expected within six months compared to 10 months under standard review. The Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) action date is in the third quarter of 2025.
Schedule your 30 min Free 1stOncology Demo!
Discover why more than 1,500 members use 1stOncology™ to excel in:
Early/Late Stage Pipeline Development - Target Scouting - Clinical Biomarkers - Indication Selection & Expansion - BD&L Contacts - Conference Reports - Combinatorial Drug Settings - Companion Diagnostics - Drug Repositioning - First-in-class Analysis - Competitive Analysis - Deals & Licensing
Schedule Your 30 min Free Demo!
"We believe zongertinib has the potential to transform the care of previously treated patients with HER2 (ERBB2)-mutant advanced non-small cell lung cancer and are hopeful about the continued research in other tumor types and lines of therapy," said Shashank Deshpande, Member of the Board of Managing Directors and Head of Human Pharma at Boehringer Ingelheim. "Priority Review illustrates the urgent need in this patient population and the possibility for zongertinib to be a groundbreaking innovation for patients with limited treatment options."
The application was based on results from the positive Phase Ib Beamion LUNG-1 trial. Data from Cohort 1 (N=75) of the study demonstrated an objective response rate (ORR) of 71% with six-month progression-free survival (PFS) and duration of response (DoR) rates of 69% and 73%, respectively, in patients with mutations in the HER2 tyrosine kinase domain.
Zongertinib had a safety profile with a low incidence of dose reductions (5%) and treatment discontinuations (3%). The majority of treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs) with zongertinib were mild in nature with diarrhea and rash being the most common all grade TRAEs, at 51% and 27% respectively. No new safety signals were observed. Grade 3 or higher TRAEs occurred in one patient treated with zongertinib. No treatment-related interstitial lung disease (ILD) cases were reported.
"Personalized medicine has revolutionized cancer treatment," said GO2 for Lung Cancer’s Chief Scientific Officer, Courtney Granville. "Early screening and biomarker testing for mutations provide critical information to guide targeted therapies in personalized medicine. This filing acceptance represents a significant step toward offering another option for individuals with a HER2 (ERBB2) diagnosis, bringing hope and direction to cancer patients."
Zongertinib was previously granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation and Fast Track Designation by the FDA. The FDA’s Breakthrough Therapy designation is intended to expedite the development and review of a medicine that is intended to treat a serious or life-threatening disease, and preliminary clinical evidence indicates the drug may demonstrate substantial improvement over available treatments. The FDA’s Fast Track program is designed to facilitate the development and expedite the review of drugs to treat serious conditions and fill an unmet medical need. In addition to the FDA designations, Japan’s Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency recently granted Orphan Drug Designation to zongertinib.
About the Beamion clinical trial program
Beamion LUNG-1 (NCT04886804) is an open-label, Phase I dose escalation trial, with dose confirmation and expansion, of zongertinib as monotherapy in people with unresectable or metastatic solid tumors with HER2 (ERBB2) alterations. Beamion LUNG-2 is a Phase III, open label, randomized, active-controlled study that is enrolling patients with unresectable or metastatic non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) harboring HER2 (ERBB2) tyrosine kinase domain mutations to evaluate zongertinib compared with standard of care.
About zongertinib
Zongertinib (also known as BI 1810631) is an investigational, irreversible tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) that selectively inhibits HER2 (ERBB2) while sparing EGFR, thereby limiting associated toxicities. This orally administered, targeted treatment is being developed for HER2 (ERRB2)-mutant advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and additional clinical studies with zongertinib are ongoing in solid tumors with HER2 alterations.
About non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)
Lung cancer claims more lives than any other cancer type and the incidence is set to increase to over 3 million cases worldwide by 2040.ii NSCLC is the most common type of lung cancer.iii Due to a lack of symptoms and misdiagnoses,iv most patients diagnosed with NSCLC present at stage III or IV, where the disease has metastasized locally or to other organs.v Fewer than 3 in 10 patients are alive five years after a diagnosis of HER2 (ERBB2)-mutant advanced NSCLC.vi People living with advanced NSCLC can experience a detrimental physical, psychological, and emotional impact on their daily lives. There remains a high unmet need for additional treatment options for people living with advanced NSCLC. HER2 (ERBB2) mutations occur in approximately 2–4% of NSCLC cases and are associated with a poor prognosis and higher incidence of brain metastases.vii,viii Mutations in HER2 (ERBB2) can lead to overexpression and overactivation, which can in turn result in uncontrolled cell production, inhibition of cell death and promotion of tumor growth and spread.