Pfizer Inc. announced today that the European Commission (EC) has approved VYNDAQEL® (tafamidis), a once-daily 61 mg oral capsule, for the treatment of wild-type or hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis in adult patients with cardiomyopathy (ATTR-CM). VYNDAQEL is the first and only treatment approved in the European Union (EU) for patients with ATTR-CM. Prior to this approval, treatment options for patients with ATTR-CM were restricted to symptom management, and, in rare cases, heart (or heart and liver) transplant.

ATTR amyloidosis is rare, progressive disease characterized by the abnormal buildup of amyloid deposits composed of misfolded transthyretin protein in the body’s organs and tissues. ATTR amyloidosis can impact numerous organs and tissues in the body, including the peripheral nervous system, and organs such as the heart, kidneys, gastrointestinal tract and eyes. ATTR-CM and ATTR-PN are two presentations of the disease.

ATTR-CM affects the heart and leads to restrictive cardiomyopathy and progressive heart failure. There are two sub-types of ATTR-CM: hereditary, which is caused by a mutation in the transthyretin gene and can occur in people as early as their 50s and 60s; or the wild-type form which is associated with aging, and is thought to be more common, usually affecting men after age 60. Often ATTR-CM is diagnosed only after symptoms have become severe.

“Until today, there were no approved medicines to treat patients with ATTR-CM in the EU. Today’s approval represents incredible progress for these patients and reflects our steadfast commitment to delivering breakthrough medicines to rare disease patients,” said Paul Levesque, Global President, Pfizer Rare Disease. “Additionally, with today’s milestone, VYNDAQEL is now the first treatment to have two formulations approved in the EU to treat manifestations of transthyretin amyloidosis: one for cardiomyopathy, and one for stage 1 polyneuropathy.”

ATTR-CM is a rare, under diagnosed and life-threatening disease characterized by the buildup of abnormal deposits of misfolded protein called amyloid in the heart and is defined by restrictive cardiomyopathy and progressive heart failure. Once diagnosed, the median life expectancy in patients with ATTR-CM, dependent on sub-type, is approximately two to 3.5 years.

The EC approval of VYNDAQEL is based on results from the Phase 3 ATTR-ACT study, the first and only completed global, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial to investigate a pharmacologic therapy for the treatment of ATTR-CM. The study compared patients who received an oral daily dose of 20 mg or 80 mg of tafamidis meglumine compared to those who received placebo.