FDA approves Balversa to treat bladder cancer

Johnson & Johnson’s Balversa (erdafitinib) has FDA approval as the first targeted therapy for advanced bladder cancer. Balversa is the first approved drug in a class known as FGFR inhibitors that targets growth factor receptors involved in cell growth and division. .

The efficacy of Balversa was studied in a clinical trial that included 87 patients with locally advanced or metastatic bladder cancer, with FGFR3 or FGFR2 genetic alterations, that had progressed following treatment with chemotherapy. The overall response rate in these patients was 32.2%, with 2.3% having a complete response and almost 30% having a partial response. The response lasted for an average of approximately five-and-a-half months. About a quarter of patients in the study were previously treated with anti PD-L1/PD-1 therapy, which is a standard treatment for patients with locally advanced or metastatic bladder cancer. Responses to Balversa were seen in patients who had previously not responded to anti PD-L1/PD-1 therapy.

Comment: The most common type of bladder cancer is transitional cell carcinoma, also called urothelial carcinoma. Bladder cancers are associated with genetic mutations that are present in the patient's bladder or entire urothelium (the lining of the lower urinary tract). Bladder cancer is the sixth most common cancer in the United States. Fibroblast growth factor (FGFR) alterations are present in approximately one in five patients with recurrent and refractory bladder cancer.