Specialised Therapeutics' Abraxane to be reimbursed via Australian PBS

Australian biopharma company Specialised Therapeutics is to have its Abraxane (nanoparticle albumin-bound paclitaxel) in combination with gemcitabine, reimbursed via the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) for patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer from November 1. Specialised Therapeutics is marketing the drug in Australia under license from US biotech firm Celgene (Nasdaq: CELG).

Abraxane was approved by the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration in March 2014 as first-line treatment for patients with metastatic adenocarcinoma of the pancreas. The approval and the PBS reimbursement were based on the Phase III trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine in October 2013, which showed that Abraxane plus gemcitabine significantly improved overall survival, progression-free survival and response rates against gemcitabine alone.