27 February 2015 - Novartis announced today that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency adopted a positive opinion for Zykadia (ceritinib) to treat adult patients with anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) previously treated with crizotinib. If approved in the European Union (EU), Zykadia will be the first treatment option to address an unmet medical need for patients with ALK+ NSCLC previously treated with crizotinib.

"Patients with advanced ALK+ NSCLC have few options when their cancer does not respond to currently approved therapy," said Alessandro Riva, MD, Global Head, Novartis Oncology Development and Medical Affairs. "As a leader in the development of precision oncology medicines, Novartis is committed to developing and bringing to market new treatments for patients with ALK+ NSCLC. This positive CHMP opinion for Zykadia brings us one step closer to providing the lung cancer community with new hope in the fight against this terrible disease."

For more details, go to: http://www.novartis.com/newsroom/media-releases/en/2015/1898130.shtml