NEW YORK (Reuters) - Eli Lilly and Co (LLY.N: Quote, Profile, Research) on Friday said an advisory panel to European regulators has recommended that its Alimta drug be approved for the new use as a first-line treatment for advanced lung cancer.

The Indianapolis drugmaker said the favorable opinion from the Committee for Medicinal Products will likely sway the European Medicines Agency to formally approve the new use of Alimta within a few months.

Alimta, currently approved to treat cancer caused by exposure to asbestos and second-line treatment of lung cancer, is one of Lilly's fastest growing products. It is likewise awaiting approval in the United States for first-line use against advanced non-small cell lung cancer -- the most common form of the hard-to-treat cancer.

(Reporting by Ransdell Pierson, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)