Daiichi Sankyo Co. Ltd. blood thinner edoxaban met its primary goal in a phase 3b trial, according to findings presented at the American Society of Hematology meeting in Atlanta.
The study evaluated the drug versus low molecular weight heparin dalteparin in venous thromboembolism associated with primarily active cancer.
Venous thromboembolism includes both deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism. It is a condition in which blood clots form in the deep veins of the leg and can travel in the circulation and lodge in the lungs. The disease is the second leading cause of death in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy.
Edoxaban met the primary goal of being non-inferior for the composite outcome of first recurrent venous thromboembolism. In the trial, 67 of 522 patients in the edoxaban group experienced venous thromboembolism, compared with 71 of 524 patients in the dalteparin group.
The study also met the secondary outcome of event-free survival at 12 months.
Edoxaban is known as Savaysa in the U.S. and as Lixiana elsewhere.
