EU agency backs Glaxo's Hycamtin for lung cancer

LONDON, Feb 4 (Reuters) - GlaxoSmithKline Plc (GSK.L) said on Monday its capsule drug Hycamtin had been recommended for approval by the European Medicines Agency for treating relapsed small-cell lung cancer, a relatively uncommon form of the disease.

The drug, also known as topotecan, will be approved as monotherapy in adult patients for whom re-treatment with the first-line regimen is not considered appropriate -- once Glaxo receives final clearance from the European Commission. Glaxo said it expected this formal approval in around two months time.

Hycamtin won a similar approval for lung cancer in the United States last October. The product belongs to a class of drugs known as topoisomerase I inhibitors. (Reporting by Ben Hirschler)