Takeda launches new treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma in Philippines

Takeda, the largest pharmaceutical company in Japan and Asia, has launched in the country the first new breakthrough treatment developed after 30 years for Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Brentuximab vedotin is a type of monoclonal antibody that targets a protein called CD30 that is found on Hodgkin’s lymphoma cells and anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) cells.

Brentuximab sticks to the CD30 protein and delivers a drug that kills the cancerous cells.

Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a cancer of the lymphatic system (part of the immune system) in which cells in the lymphatic system grow abnormally and may spread beyond the lymphatic system. As Hodgkin’s lymphoma progresses, it compromises the body’s ability to fight infection.

ALCL is a rare type of blood cancer more common in young people, mostly boys. It involves the uncontrolled production of white blood cells (lymphocytes) that usually fight infection. The lymphocytes accumulate in the lymph nodes or in other parts of the body, such as the lungs or skin.

“Brentuximab vedotin is a highly effective drug with an adequate safety profile that fills an unmet therapeutic need in patients with CD30-positive relapsed or refractory Hodgkin’s lymphoma or relapsed or refractory ALCL,” said Dr. Anna Sureda, head of Hematology Department, Institut Català d’Oncologia, Hospital Duran i Reynals, Barcelona, Spain.

Dr. Sureda was the guest speaker during a lunch symposium organized by Takeda Healthcare Philippines in line with the 45th annual convention of the Philippine Society of Hematology and Blood Transfusion held on Sept. 6-8 at Crowne Plaza Manila Galleria, Quezon City.