A new medication, Ofev® (nintedanib) has been launched by Boehringer Ingelheim for the treatment of patients with chronic fibrosing Interstitial Lung Diseases (ILDs) with a progressive phenotype.
ILDs comprise more than 200 disorders, including pulmonary fibrosis - a condition in which the lungs become irreversibly scarred and cease to work properly.
Ofev, which is currently under FDA review, is an anti-fibrotic therapy for the treatment of Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) and scleroderma.
The medication works by interfering with the Platelet-Derived Growth Factor (PDGF) and Fibroblast Growth Factor (FGF) signaling pathways, known to be overly active in patients with lung fibrosis.
The designation given by the US FDA for nintedanib was supported by results obtained from the phase III INBUILD trial.
The study enrolled 663 adult patients with progressive ILDs other than IPF who were randomly assigned to receive either Ofev or placebo for one year.
The most common adverse event seen during the trial was diarrhea, which was more frequent among patients treated with Ofev than among those treated with the placebo.
