Faculty Articles

A Review of 2014 Cancer Drug Approvals, With a Look at 2015 and Beyond

Publication Title

P&T Community

Volume

40

Issue

3

Date of original Performance / Presentation

2015

First Page

191

Last Page

205

Abstract

The number of cancer drugs approved each year by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has been growing steadily. From 1998 to 2001, the agency gave the green light to 17 new drugs or additional indications for older drugs in the cancer setting. In contrast, since the beginning of 2011, 55 new cancer drugs or additional indications for older treatments have received regulatory approval.1 With this accelerated entry of new cancer treatments onto the market, health care practitioners may find it difficult to keep abreast of the complex array of mechanisms of action, dosing regimens, monitoring parameters, and drug-preparation requirements.

In addition to the currently available cancer treatments, 771 new agents were reported to be in the pipeline in 2014, with more than 80% of them identified as first-in-class treatments.

This article provides a concise overview of drugs added to the cancer armamentarium starting at the beginning of 2014 (Table 1); discusses new indications for previously approved cancer treatments; and highlights investigational agents under FDA review or in the oncology pipeline.

Disciplines

Medicine and Health Sciences | Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Keywords

cancer drugs, drug approvals, first-in-class treatments, Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

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