Note: Approved medications have two names, a generic (or chemical) name and a brand name associated with the drug company that manufactures it. The generic or chemical name describes the drug itself while the brand name is intended to be catchy and make the drug more familiar. ROMVIMZA is a brand name for the drug Vimseltinib. These names are used synonymously and refer to the same medication
ROMVIMZA (Vimseltinib)
ROMVIMZA (also called Vimseltinib) was approved on February 14, 2025 by the Food and Drug Administration (1). Romvimza was approved for adult patients with symptomatic tenosynovial giant cell tumor (TGCT) for which surgical resection will potentially cause worsening functional limitation or severe morbidity. This means Romvimza was approved for patients with TGCT experiencing symptoms and who are unlikely to benefit from surgery either due to the complexity of surgery, inability to remove the entire disease, and/or high risk of recurrence. Romvimza 30 mg is intended to be taken orally twice weekly (a minimum of 72 hours between doses).
It is expected that the approval decision in Europe will follow shortly after the US approval date.
Previously, a Phase 2/3 study was conducted, meaning the side effects were evaluated as well as the effectiveness of the drug. The Phase 3 trial is known as MOTION, which demonstrated the drug was effective at shrinking patients' tumors and reducing symptoms of disease.
Published data shows it is relatively safe and effectively shrinks TGCT in 40% of patients and reduces disease-related symptoms such as pain, stiffness, and improving range of motion (1). Other measurements for tumor shrinkage, such as tumor volume, demonstrate that vimseltinib shrinks TGCT in 67% of patients. Volume-based measurements may better capture drug response because TGCTs aren’t only 2-dimensional and therefore, measuring diameters does not represent the full picture. TGCT may change in volume but not in length, for example.
The most common side effects that affected 20% or more of people in the approval of Romvimza included laboratory abnormalities such as mild elevation in liver enzymes, swelling around the face and eyes, fatigue, tiredness, rash, increased cholesterol, swelling around the hands and legs, decreased white blood cells (neutrophils and leukocytes, special types of white blood cell), and itching (1).
Patients will have blood tests to check liver enzymes before starting Romvimza, twice a month for the first two months, and then once every 3 months for the first year of treatment.
If a patient is not tolerating the 30 mg (e.g., due to side effects), there are two dose adjustments available. Patients can be switched to 20 mg or 14 mg. Please consult your doctor about any dose adjustments.
