Epidiolex Enjoys Mellow Advisory Cmte. Meeting

GW Pharmaceuticals’ cannabis-derived epilepsy drug gets unanimous panel endorsement, affirming US FDA's belief that there are no obstacles to approval.

GW Pharmaceuticals PLC's epilepsy drug Epidiolex (cannabidiol) looks destined to be the first cannabis-derived drug approved in the US, as FDA's Peripheral and Central Nervous System Drugs Advisory Committee unanimously backed the risk/benefit profile by a 13-0 margin in a seemingly superfluous meeting April 19.

The agency had come into the meeting with an already positive opinion of Epidiolex, which is specifically designed for the treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) and Dravet syndrome (DS) in patients ages 2 and older. FDA clinical reviewers lauded the efficacy, and felt the safety signals, especially those related to transaminase elevations, were manageable through labeling and postmarket monitoring

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