FDA Gives Nod to BMS’ Camzyos for Obstructive Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy

The FDA has approved Bristol Myers Squibb’s cardiac myosin inhibitor, Camzyos (mavacamten), for the treatment of patients with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), a rare genetic condition in which the heart muscle thickens.

The approval is the first by the agency for a cardiac myosin inhibitor for this specific indication. Myosin inhibitors target the interaction between actin — a protein found in muscle cells — and myosin so that the heart does not squeeze as hard.

The approval was based on positive results from a late-stage study of 251 participants. By week 30, 37 percent of patients who received the treatment showed improvements vs. just 17 percent of those who received placebo.