The FDA has approved Seglentis (Esteve/Kowa), an oral combination of tramadol hydrochloride, a weak opioid agonist and weak serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI), and celecoxib, a COX-2 selective nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), for use in adults with acute pain that is severe enough to require an opioid and for which alternative treatment options are inadequate.

Tovorafenib (Ojemda – Day One), a type II RAF kinase inhibitor, has received accelerated approval from the FDA for treatment of patients ≥6 months old with relapsed or refractory pediatric low-grade glioma harboring a BRAF fusion or rearrangement or a BRAF V600 mutation. Tovorafenib is the first systemic treatment to be approved in the US for pediatric low-grade gliomas with BRAF fusions. Accelerated approval of tovorafenib was based on response rates and duration of response.

View the Comparison Table: Some Oral/Transdermal Opioid Analgesics

View the Comparison Table: Some Drugs for Migraine Prevention in Adults

Tarlatamab-dlle (Imdelltra – Amgen), a first-in-class bispecific delta-like ligand 3 (DLL3)-directed CD3 T-cell engager, has received accelerated approval from the FDA for treatment of extensive-stage small cell lung cancer (SCLC) in adults who had disease progression on or after platinum-based chemotherapy. It is the first bispecific DLL3-directed CD3 T-cell engager to be approved in the US for this indication. Most patients with SCLC have a response to initial treatment, but progression generally occurs within a few months and overall survival is usually less than 8 months....

Penpulimab-kcqx (Anniko – Akeso Biopharma), a programmed death receptor-1 (PD-1)-blocking antibody, has been approved by the FDA for use in combination with cisplatin or carboplatin plus gemcitabine for first-line treatment of recurrent or metastatic nonkeratinizing nasopharyngeal carcinoma and for use as monotherapy for metastatic disease in adults with disease progression on or after platinum-based chemotherapy and at least one other prior line of therapy. Penpulimab is the second immune checkpoint inhibitor to be approved in the US for treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma;...

The FDA has approved the oral tyrosine kinase inhibitor repotrectinib (Augtyro – BMS) for treatment of locally advanced or metastatic ROS1-positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in adults. Repotrectinib is the third oral tyrosine kinase inhibitor to be approved for this indication in the US; crizotinib (Xalkori) and entrectinib (Rozlytrek) were approved earlier.

Resmetirom (Rezdiffra – Madrigal), a thyroid hormone receptor-beta agonist, has received accelerated approval from the FDA for treatment of noncirrhotic nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) with moderate to advanced fibrosis in adults. NASH has recently been renamed metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH). Resmetirom is the first drug to be approved in the US for this indication.

In our article on Drugs for Chronic Insomnia, we said there is little evidence that antidepressants such as trazodone, mirtazapine, or amitriptyline are effective in treating insomnia not associated with depression. We received a comment from a reader who has prescribed the tricyclic antidepressant amitriptyline for insomnia, particularly for patients with headache disorders, and finds that most patients are satisfied with the treatment.

View Comparison Table: Some Drugs for Maintenance Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder