Announcement • Jul 13
Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. Receives Fda Acceptance of Supplemental New Drug Application for Full Approval of Voxzogo (Vosoritide) for Children with Achondroplasia
BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted the company's supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) for VOXZOGO (vosoritide) for full approval in children with achondroplasia. The FDA has set a Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) target action date of Feb. 28, 2027. The application is based on long-term safety and efficacy data from three ongoing studies, including adult height and additional clinical outcomes beyond linear growth, including body proportionality and arm span evaluated over long-term follow-up. The sNDA submission was supported by substantial long-term safety and efficacy data from three ongoing studies (111-205, 111-208 and 111-302), including clinically meaningful results in growth and improvements across key skeletal growth-related measures, including proportionality and arm span. The full package submitted to the FDA included the longest efficacy and safety data of any medicine studied in achondroplasia. VOXZOGO received FDA accelerated approval in 2021, a pathway enabling faster patient access based on measures reasonably likely to predict clinical benefit. This sNDA is intended to fulfill the postmarketing requirement to confirm that benefit and convert to full approval, supported by long-term data from three ongoing studies demonstrating clinically meaningful improvements in growth and skeletal health outcomes in children with achondroplasia. Achondroplasia, the most common form of skeletal dysplasia leading to disproportionate short stature in humans, is characterized by slowing of endochondral ossification, which results in disproportionate short stature and disordered architecture in the long bones, spine, face and base of the skull. This condition is caused by a change in the FGFR3 gene, a negative regulator of bone growth. More than 80% of children with achondroplasia have parents of average stature and have the condition as the result of a spontaneous gene mutation. The worldwide incidence rate of achondroplasia is about one in 25,000 live births. VOXZOGO is being tested in children whose growth plates are still "open," typically those under 18 years of age. Approximately 25% of people with achondroplasia fall into this category. In children with achondroplasia, endochondral bone growth, an essential process by which bone tissue is created, is negatively regulated due to a gain of function mutation in FGFR3. VOXZOGO, a C-type natriuretic peptide (CNP) analog, acts as a positive regulator of the signaling pathway downstream of FGFR3 to promote endochondral bone growth. VOXZOGO is the only approved medicine to support the growth of children with achondroplasia starting from birth, with international consensus guidelines recommending initiation of VOXZOGO as early as possible. First approved in 2021, VOXZOGO has helped more than 5,000 infants and children in more than 50 countries. Through ongoing studies, BioMarin continues to evaluate VOXZOGO on key clinical endpoints relevant for achondroplasia patients, such as arm span, tibial bowing (leg bowing), body proportionality, spinal morphology (including spinal stenosis) and quality of life measures. VOXZOGO is approved in the U.S., Japan and Australia to increase linear growth in children of all ages with achondroplasia with open epiphyses, and VOXZOGO is indicated in the EU for the treatment of achondroplasia in children 4 months of age and older whose epiphyses are not closed, as confirmed by appropriate genetic testing. In the U.S., this indication is approved under accelerated approval based on an improvement in annualized growth velocity. Continued approval may be contingent upon verification and description of clinical benefit in confirmatory trial(s). To fulfill this post-marketing requirement, BioMarin intends to use the ongoing open-label extension studies compared to available natural history. BioMarin provides resources to support families navigating achondroplasia, including a caregiver mentorship program that connects parents with other caregivers, and a U.S. doctor directory that helps families and healthcare professionals identify clinicians experienced in achondroplasia care. VOXZOGO is a prescription medicine used to increase linear growth in children with achondroplasia and open growth plates (epiphyses). VOXZOGO is approved under accelerated approval based on an improvement in annualized growth velocity. Continued approval may be contingent upon verification and description of clinical benefit in confirmatory trials. VOXZOGO may cause serious side effects including a temporary decrease in blood pressure in some patients. To reduce the risk of a decrease in blood pressure and associated symptoms (dizziness, feeling tired, or nausea), patients should eat a meal and drink 8 to 10 ounces of fluid within 1 hour before receiving VOXZOGO. The most common side effects of VOXZOGO include injection site reactions (including redness, itching, swelling, bruising, rash, hives, and injection site pain), high levels of blood alkaline phosphatase shown in blood tests, vomiting, joint pain, decreased blood pressure, and stomachache. These are not all the possible side effects of VOXZOGO. VOXZOGO is taken daily as an injection given under the skin, administered by a caregiver after a healthcare provider determines the caregiver is able to administer VOXZOGO. Do not try to inject VOXZOGO until you have been shown the right way by healthcare provider. VOXZOGO is supplied with Instructions for Use that describe the steps for preparing, injecting, and disposing VOXZOGO. Caregivers should review the Instructions for Use for guidance and any time they receive a refill of VOXZOGO in case any changes have been made. Inject VOXZOGO 1 time every day, at about the same time each day. If a dose of VOXZOGO is missed, it can be given within 12 hours from the missed dose. After 12 hours, skip the missed dose and administer the next daily dose as usual. The dose of VOXZOGO is based on body weight. healthcare provider will adjust the dose based on changes in weight following regular check-ups. healthcare provider will monitor the patient's growth and tell when to stop taking VOXZOGO if they determine the patient is no longer able to grow. Stop administering VOXZOGO if instructed by healthcare provider.
