Agios Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has revealed that the European Commission has granted marketing authorisation for PYRUKYND (mitapivat), an oral pyruvate kinase (PK) activator, in adults for the treatment of anaemia associated with transfusion-dependent and non-transfusion-dependent alpha- or beta-thalassaemia, with an orphan medicinal product designation.
Avanzanite Bioscience B.V. will commercialise and distribute PYRUKYND in Europe under its exclusive agreement with Agios.
“Thalassaemia is a complex, chronic and multisystem disease characterised by anaemia, ineffective erythropoiesis and haemolysis, which together place a significant burden on patients, including a substantial impact on quality of life and persistent fatigue,” said Raffaella Origa, professor of paediatrics at the University of Cagliari, Italy, and president of the Italian Society of Thalassaemia and Haemoglobinopathies (SITE).
“The approval of PYRUKYND in the EU represents an important step forward, introducing a new oral treatment option regardless of genotype or transfusion burden, with the potential to address key aspects of the disease, including reducing transfusion burden and improving patient outcomes.”
The EC’s decision follows the positive opinion issued by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) and is based on results from the global, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled ENERGIZE and ENERGIZE-T phase 3 trials. The approval of PYRUKYND for adults with thalassaemia marks its second indication in the EU, following its 2022 approval for adults with PK deficiency.
“The treatment of thalassaemia continues to place a profound burden on patients and healthcare systems,” said Antonis Kattamis, professor at the National & Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece, and an investigator in the PYRUKYND thalassaemia phase 3 clinical programme.
“An oral therapy such as PYRUKYND has the potential to transform the care of both transfusion-dependent and non-transfusion-dependent patients, and we welcome being able to provide this option in our clinical practice.”
In June 2025, Avanzanite entered into an exclusive agreement with Agios to commercialise and distribute PYRUKYND across the European Economic Area, the UK, and Switzerland. Avanzanite will continue to work with Agios, local health authorities and patient communities to secure access for PYRUKYND across the EU.
“Today’s approval of Agios’ first-in-class PK activator in the EU is great news for adults living with thalassaemia and we are proud and privileged to partner with Agios to distribute and commercialise this medicine in the region,” said Adam Plich, CEO and co-founder of Avanzanite Bioscience.
“Our role now is to collaborate with local authorities, drive a successful launch, and enable broad access to PYRUKYND in this indication, helping to ensure no thalassaemia patient is left behind, across the EU.”
This milestone represents the fourth rare disease launch that Avanzanite has led.