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Kite Announces Long-Term Data From Pivotal ZUMA-1 Study of Yescarta (Axicabtagene Ciloleucel) in Patients With Refractory Large B-cell Lymphoma

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 10, 2017-- Kite, a Gilead Company (Nasdaq: GILD), announced long-term follow-up data from the pivotal ZUMA-1 study of Yescarta (axicabtagene ciloleucel) in patients with refractory large B-cell lymphoma. With a minimum follow-up of one year after a single infusion of Yescarta (median follow-up of 15.4 months), 42 percent of patients continued to respond to therapy, including 40 percent with a complete remission. Detailed results from this updated analysis were simultaneously presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology (ASH) in Atlanta and published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Yescarta is the first chimeric antigen receptor T (CAR T) cell therapy to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma after two or more lines of systemic therapy, including diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) not otherwise specified, primary mediastinal large B-cell lymphoma, high grade B-cell lymphoma and DLBCL arising from follicular lymphoma. Yescarta is not indicated for patients with primary central nervous system lymphoma.

DLBCL is the most common aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma, accounting for three out of every five cases. In the United States each year, there are approximately 7,500 patients with refractory DLBCL who are eligible for CAR T therapy.

“As observed in the SCHOLAR-1 study, treatment options for patients with refractory large B-cell lymphoma have yielded a median overall survival of just six months, with fewer than ten percent of patients achieving complete remission,” said Sattva S. Neelapu, MD, ZUMA-1 Co-Lead Investigator and Professor, Department of Lymphoma/Myeloma, Division of Cancer Medicine at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. “The durability of response seen with Yescarta in this long-term follow-up reinforces the major advance that CAR T therapy represents for these patients.”

To evaluate the durability of Yescarta responses, an updated analysis was conducted when patients in ZUMA-1 had been followed for a minimum of one year (n=108). In this updated analysis, 82 percent of patients had responded to Yescarta, including 58 percent of patients who had achieved complete remission. At a median of 15.4 months post-infusion, 42 percent of patients remained in response, including 40 percent in complete remission. The median duration of response was 11.1 months (95 percent CI: 3.9 months to not estimable [NE]); in patients who have achieved a complete remission, the median duration of response was not reached (95 percent CI: NE). Median overall survival had not been reached (95 percent CI: 12 months to NE) with an overall survival rate at 18 months of 52 percent (95 percent CI: 41 to 62).

In the updated analysis, 12 percent of patients experienced Grade 3 or higher cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and 31 percent experienced neurologic toxicities respectively. The most common Grade 3 or higher reactions were neutropenia (79 percent), anemia (45 percent) and thrombocytopenia (40 percent). Ten patients experienced a serious adverse event six months after Yescarta infusion, including eight patients with infections. No new onset CRS or neurologic events related to Yescarta were observed in the updated analysis.

Yescarta has a Boxed Warning in its product label and an associated Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) regarding the risks of CRS and neurologic toxicities. Please see below for Important Safety Information.

“Historically, people with refractory large B-cell lymphoma have not been adequately served by available treatment options,” said David Chang, MD, PhD, Worldwide Head of Research and Development and Chief Medical Officer at Kite. “We are encouraged by the durability and depth of response seen in ZUMA-1 more than a year after treatment with Yescarta, which represents an important advance in the treatment of patients with refractory disease.”

Yescarta has been granted Priority Medicines (PRIME) regulatory support for DLBCL in the European Union. A Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) for axicabtagene ciloleucel is currently under review with the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and potential approval is expected in the first half of 2018.

U.S. Indication for Yescarta

Yescarta is a CD19-directed genetically modified autologous T cell immunotherapy indicated for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma after two or more lines of systemic therapy, including diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) not otherwise specified, primary mediastinal large B-cell lymphoma, high-grade B-cell lymphoma, and DLBCL arising from follicular lymphoma.

Yescarta is not indicated for the treatment of patients with primary central nervous system lymphoma.

About Kite

Kite, a Gilead Company, is a biopharmaceutical company based in Santa Monica, California. Kite is engaged in the development of innovative cancer immunotherapies. The company is focused on chimeric antigen receptor and T cell receptor engineered cell therapies. For more information on Kite, please visit www.kitepharma.com.

About Gilead Sciences

Gilead Sciences is a biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops and commercializes innovative therapeutics in areas of unmet medical need. The company’s mission is to advance the care of patients suffering from life-threatening diseases. Gilead has operations in more than 30 countries worldwide, with headquarters in Foster City, California.

Forward-Looking Statement

This press release includes forward-looking statements, within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors including the possibility of unfavorable results from further clinical trials involving Yescarta. In addition, regulatory agencies, including the EMA, may not approve Yescarta in the currently anticipated timelines or at all, and any marketing approvals may have significant limitations on its use. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties and are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of risks and uncertainties. Risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ from expectations contemplated by forward-looking statements include risks and uncertainties detailed from time to time in Gilead Sciences, Inc.’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2017 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements are based on information currently available to Gilead and Kite, and Gilead and Kite assume no obligation and disclaim any intent to update any such forward-looking statements.

US Prescribing Information for Yescarta, including BOXED WARNING and Medication Guide, is available at www.yescarta.com.

For more information on Gilead Sciences, please visit the company’s website at www.gilead.com, follow Gilead on Twitter (@GileadSciences) or call Gilead Public Affairs at 1-800-GILEAD-5 or 1-650-574-3000.

Source: Gilead Sciences

Posted: December 2017

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