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By Herb Newborg

Which FDA Advisory Panels Offer The Most New Drug Endorsements?

The winner is the Peripheral & Central Nervous System Drugs Advisory Committee, which has not rejected a new drug in the last 3-1/2 years. The latest endorsement was given to the Novartis multiple sclerosis pill, Gilenia.

This is the only FDA advisory committee that doesn’t know the word ‘no.’

Overall, 70 percent of all applications that made it to an FDA advisory committee for review between 2007 and 2010 won positive recommendations, according to Concept Capital, which only considered new molecular entities and major new indications for existing drugs. Also, only the final voting question on whether a drug should be recommended for approval was tallied.

Some other findings from the study: the committee with the second-highest endorsement rate was Psychopharmacologic at 92 percent, followed by Endocrinologic and Metabolic at 88 percent, Dermatologic and Ophthalmic at 86 percent, and Anti-Viral at 80 percent.

Which one was lowest? Oncologic clocked in at 55 percent, followed closely by Anesthetic & Life Support in at 56 percent. From there, the Reproductive Health and the Gastrointestinal committees both registered 60 percent. The Cardio-Renal committee was at 62 percent, the Pulmonary & Allergy had a 63 percent rate and the Arthritis committee turned in a 67 percent recommended approval rate.