ALIMTA 500MG POWDER FOR SOLUTION FOR INFUSION [SIN13042P]

Product Info

ALIMTA 500MG POWDER FOR SOLUTION FOR INFUSION

[SIN13042P]

4.1. Therapeutic indications
Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma (MPM):
Alimta in combination with cisplatin is indicated for the treatment of chemotherapy naïve patients with unresectable MPM or who are otherwise not candidates for curative surgery.

Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) (see section 5.1 – please refer to the Product Insert/Patient Information Leaflet published on HSA for the full drug information):
Alimta in combination with cisplatin is indicated for the first line treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic non-squamous NSCLC.

Alimta in combination with pembrolizumab, and platinum chemotherapy, is indicated for the first-line treatment of patients with metastatic non-squamous NSCLC, with no EGFR or ALK genomic tumor aberrations.

Alimta is indicated as monotherapy for the maintenance treatment of locally advanced or metastatic non-squamous NSCLC in patients whose disease has not progressed immediately following first-line treatment with platinum-based chemotherapy.

Alimta is indicated as monotherapy for the second line treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic non-squamous NSCLC.

4.2. Posology and method of administration
Alimta must only be administered under the supervision of a physician qualified in the use of anti-cancer chemotherapy.

Alimta in combination with cisplatin:
The recommended dose of Alimta is 500 mg/m² of body surface area (BSA) administered as an intravenous infusion over 10 minutes on the first day of each 21-day cycle. The recommended dose of cisplatin is 75 mg/m² BSA infused over two hours approximately 30 minutes after completion of the Alimta infusion on the first day of each 21-day cycle. Patients must receive adequate anti-emetic treatment and appropriate hydration prior to and/or after receiving cisplatin (see cisplatin package insert for specific dosing advice).

Alimta in combination with pembrolizumab and platinum chemotherapy:
The recommended dose of Alimta when administered with pembrolizumab and platinum chemotherapy for the initial treatment of metastatic non-squamous NSCLC in patients with a creatinine clearance (calculated by Cockcroft-Gault equation) of 45 mL/min or greater is 500 mg/m² as an intravenous infusion over 10 minutes administered after pembrolizumab and prior to carboplatin or cisplatin on Day 1 of each 21-day cycle for 4 cycles. Following completion of platinum-based therapy, treatment with Alimta with or without pembrolizumab is administered until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. Please refer to the full prescribing information for pembrolizumab and for carboplatin or cisplatin.

Alimta as single agent:
In patients treated for NSCLC after prior chemotherapy, the recommended dose of Alimta is 500 mg/m² BSA administered as an intravenous infusion over 10 minutes on the first day of each 21-day cycle.

Pre-medication Regimen:
To reduce the incidence and severity of skin reactions, a corticosteroid should be given the day prior to, on the day of, and the day after Alimta administration. The corticosteroid should be equivalent to 4mg of dexamethasone administered orally twice a day (see section 4.4 – please refer to the Product Insert/Patient Information Leaflet published on HSA for the full drug information).
To reduce toxicity, patients treated with Alimta must also receive vitamin supplementation (see section 4.4 – please refer to the Product Insert/Patient Information Leaflet published on HSA for the full drug information). Patients must take oral folic acid or a multivitamin containing folic acid (350–1000mcg) on a daily basis. The most commonly used dose of oral folic acid in clinical trials was 400mcg. At least five doses of folic acid must be taken during the seven days preceding the first dose of Alimta and dosing must continue during the full course of therapy and for 21 days after the last dose of Alimta. Patients must also receive an intramuscular injection of vitamin B₁₂ (1000mcg) in the week preceding the first dose of Alimta and once every three cycles thereafter. Subsequent vitamin B₁₂ injections may be given on the same day as Alimta.

Monitoring:
Patients receiving Alimta should be monitored before each dose with a complete blood count, including a differential white cell count (WCC) and platelet count. Prior to each chemotherapy administration blood chemistry tests should be collected to evaluate renal and hepatic function. Before the start of any cycle of chemotherapy, patients are required to have the following: Absolute Neutrophil Count (ANC) should be ≥ 1500 cells/mm³ and platelets should be ≥ 100,000 cells/mm³.
Creatinine clearance should be ≥ 45 ml/min.
The total bilirubin should be ≤ 1.5 times upper limit of normal. Alkaline phosphatase (AP), aspartate aminotransferase (AST or SGOT) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT or SGPT) should be ≤ 3 times upper limit of normal. Alkaline phosphatase, AST and ALT ≤ 5 times upper limit of normal is acceptable if liver has tumour involvement.

Dose Adjustments:
Dose adjustments at the start of a subsequent cycle should be based on nadir haematologic counts or maximum non-haematologic toxicity from the preceding cycle of therapy. Treatment may be delayed to allow sufficient time for recovery. Upon recovery patients should be retreated using the guidelines in Tables 1, 2 and 3; which are applicable for Alimta used as a single agent or in combination with cisplatin.

If patients develop non-haematologic toxicities ≥ Grade 3 (excluding neurotoxicity), Alimta should be withheld until resolution to less than or equal to the patient’s pre-therapy value. Treatment should be resumed according to the guidelines in Table 2.

In the event of neurotoxicity, the recommended dose adjustment for Alimta and cisplatin is documented in Table 3. Patients should discontinue therapy if Grade 3 or 4 neurotoxicity is observed.

Treatment with Alimta should be discontinued if a patient experiences any haematologic or non-haematologic Grade 3 or 4 toxicity after 2 dose reductions or immediately if Grade 3 or 4 neurotoxicity is observed.

Special populations
Elderly
In clinical studies, there has been no indication that patients 65 years of age or older are at increased risk of adverse reaction compared to patients younger than 65 years old. No dose reductions other than those recommended for all patients are necessary.

Paediatric population
Alimta is not recommended for use in children below 18 years of age, due to insufficient data on safety and efficacy.

Patients with renal impairment (Standard Cockcroft and Gault formula or Glomerular Filtration Rate measured Tc99m-DPTA serum clearance method)
Alimta is primarily eliminated unchanged by renal excretion. In clinical studies, patients with creatinine clearance of ≥ 45 ml/min required no dose adjustments other than those recommended for all patients. There are insufficient data on the use of Alimta in patients with creatinine clearance below 45 ml/min; therefore the use of Alimta is not recommended (see section 4.4 – please refer to the Product Insert/Patient Information Leaflet published on HSA for the full drug information).

Patients with hepatic impairment
No relationships between AST (SGOT), ALT (SGPT) or total bilirubin and Alimta pharmacokinetics were identified. However patients with hepatic impairment such as bilirubin > 1.5 times the upper limit of normal and/or aminotransferase > 3.0 times the upper limit of normal (hepatic metastases absent) or > 5.0 times the upper limit of normal (hepatic metastases present) have not been specifically studied.

Method of administration
ALIMTA is for intravenous use. ALIMTA should be administered as an intravenous infusion over 10 minutes on the first day of each 21-day cycle.

For precautions to be taken before handling or administering Alimta and for instructions on reconstitution and dilution of Alimta before administration, see section 6.6 – please refer to the Product Insert/Patient Information Leaflet published on HSA for the full drug information.

4.3. Contraindications
Hypersensitivity to the active substance or to any of the excipients listed in section 6.1 – please refer to the Product Insert/Patient Information Leaflet published on HSA for the full drug information.
Breastfeeding (see section 4.6 – please refer to the Product Insert/Patient Information Leaflet published on HSA for the full drug information).
Concomitant yellow fever vaccine (see section 4.5 – please refer to the Product Insert/Patient Information Leaflet published on HSA for the full drug information).