Update - 4/16/13 5:04 PM
The European Union has approved a Pfizer cancer treatment after the FDA gave it approval in January.
Read more here.
A breast cancer treatment developed by Pfizer has received a "breakthrough therapy" designation from the Food and Drug Administration. The move by the FDA could help expedite Pfizer's efforts to test the drug and bring it to market.
In current drug trials, Pfizer is trying to determine whether the new compound, called palbociclib, can provide better breast cancer treatment when paired with letrozole, a commonly used first-line treatment for post-menopausal metastatic breast cancer.
According to MLive, patients that received both letrozole and palbociclib treatment went 26 months without exhibiting worsening symptoms, while patients using only letrozole began to experience worsening symptoms within seven and a half months.
The FDA only recently mandated the "Breakthrough Therapy" designation in 2012. The designation is supposed to help expedite the development and testing process for new treatments to life-threatening illnesses.
"We appreciate the opportunity that Breakthrough Therapy designation provides to work closely with the FDA on the development of palbociclib," Dr. Mace Rothenberg, of Pfizer's Oncology business unit told MLive. "Palbociclib is one example of Pfizer's commitment to identifying and translating innovative science into meaningful new treatment options for cancer patients."
JPMorgan has predicted that the oral medicine palbociclib could create more than an additional $5 billion in revenue each year for Pfizer. Following the news, Pfizer shares rose about 2.4 percent, or 69 cents to $29.80 in midday trading.
According to the Chicago Tribune, Leerink Swan analyst Seamus Fernandez gave a more conservative estimate — saying that annual sales could reach $2.4 billion by 2020 if the breast cancer treatment is approved.
