Adults with Rare Pancreatic and Digestive Tract Tumors Gain Bexlutry, a Second FDA-Approved Version of Targeted Radiation Therapy

Adults with a rare group of cancers that begin in the pancreas, stomach, or intestines now have a second FDA-approved source of a targeted radiation drug. The FDA approved Bexlutry (lutetium Lu 177 dotatate injection), made by nuclear medicine company Curium, for adults with somatostatin receptor-positive gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors, or GEP-NETs, OncLive reported on September 14.

The approval covers tumors arising in the foregut, midgut, and hindgut. Bexlutry is not a new kind of treatment. It is a radioligand equivalent of Lutathera, the first radioactive drug approved for these tumors, and it was cleared through a pathway supported by published evidence and bridging data showing a similar biological and chemical profile, according to Curium's announcement.