Akeso Inc (9926.HK), a China-based biopharmaceutical company, announced on Sunday that China's National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) has approved the company's penpulimab, a self-developed anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody, for the first-line treatment of recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) in combination with chemotherapy.

Previously, penpulimab was approved for use as a third-line treatment for advanced NPC. With this new approval, penpulimab now provides comprehensive treatment coverage across all stages of NPC, offering patients a continuous immunotherapy option from first-line to third-line therapy.

This marks the fourth approved indication for penpulimab. In addition to the two NPC indications, penpulimab is also approved for first-line treatment of locally advanced or metastatic squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) when combined with chemotherapy, as well as for monotherapy in patients with relapsed or refractory classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) who have previously received at least two lines of systemic chemotherapy. Furthermore, a supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) for penpulimab in combination with anlotinib for first-line treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is currently under review.

Professor Hu Chaosu, one of the principal penpulimab investigators at Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, said: "In China, there remains a significant unmet clinical need for NPC. As the only IgG1 subtype anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody globally, penpulimab has demonstrated robust efficacy in clinical studies, enhancing the effectiveness of immunotherapy for NPC. The approval for first-line treatment marks a major milestone, as it provides a comprehensive treatment regimen for clinicians and patients, benefiting a large population of NPC patients in China, from first-line to third-line therapy."