(Reuters) – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved AstraZeneca’s drug to treat patients with a form of lung disease, the British drugmaker said on Friday.
The drug Breztri Aerosphere is being approved as a maintenance treatment for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the third leading cause of death globally, AstraZeneca said. [nASN0009QJ]
Known as “smoker’s lung”, COPD is a progressively worsening and potentially deadly condition that affects more than 380 million people worldwide, primarily caused by smoking, but also by occupational hazards such as air pollution or chemical fumes.
COPD-related sales of Glaxosmithkline’s drug Trelegy Ellipta more than tripled to 518 million pounds last year. Trimbow by Italy’s Chiesi is another competitor in the European market. [nL8N2E04TA]
Breztri Aerosphere is already approved in Japan and China for patients with COPD and is under regulatory review in the European Union, AstraZeneca said.
(Reporting by Aakash Jagadeesh Babu in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)
