FGFR2 Inhibitors
6 drugsAbout FGFR2
Fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) is a receptor tyrosine kinase involved in cell proliferation, differentiation, and angiogenesis signaling pathways.
FGFR2 is strongly supported by human genetics (max score 0.97), with variants linked to Pfeiffer syndrome (0.97), Crouzon syndrome (0.95), and FGFR2-related craniosynostosis (0.94). Activation of FGFR2 is likely beneficial based on genetic evidence.
Six FDA-approved drugs target FGFR2, including LENVIMA, RETEVMO, STIVARGA, OFEV, and PEMAZYRE, all of which are small molecules. These drugs span oncology, respiratory, and other therapeutic areas.
FGFR2 Genetic Evidence Strong
FGFR2 has strong genetic support with a maximum score of 0.97 across 57 diseases.
Strong genetic support suggests FGFR2-targeting therapies have a higher probability of clinical success.
💡 Why activation?
- • Loss-of-function variants increase disease risk (OR > 1) — restoring function may help
- • 50% directional consistency across 2 traits
- • Strong signal in genetic, familial or congenital disease, musculoskeletal or connective tissue disease, phenotype pathways
Cross-Disease Effects
Trade-off: HighDirection of Effect
50% alignedEvidence Across Diseases
20 totalGWAS and other genetic studies link FGFR2 to 57 diseases.
Gain-of-function causes disease; inhibition may help
🔗 Colocalization Evidence 20 strong
max H4: 1.00eQTL/pQTL signals for FGFR2 colocalize with these GWAS traits, providing causal evidence that gene expression changes drive disease risk.
Understanding these scores
Association Score (0-1): Combines all evidence types (genetic, literature, drugs, animal models). Higher = more evidence linking target to disease. This is a ranking heuristic, not a confidence score.
L2G Score: Open Targets uses a machine learning model (Locus-to-Gene) to predict which gene is causal at each GWAS locus. L2G=0.5 means ~50% probability of being the causal gene. Only associations with L2G > 0.05 are included.
Odds Ratio (OR): From gene burden studies (UK Biobank, AstraZeneca PheWAS). Measures how loss-of-function variants affect disease risk. OR<1 = protective (inhibiting target may help), OR>1 = risk (losing function causes disease).
Beta (β): Effect size for continuous traits. β<0 = protective, β>0 = risk.
Clinical Translation (~1.8x): Based on Nelson et al. 2015: drug targets with genetic evidence have ~2x higher success rates in clinical trials. We estimate: Strong support (score ≥0.7) → ~1.8x, Moderate (0.3-0.7) → ~1.3x, Weak → baseline.
Colocalization (H4): Tests whether a GWAS signal and an eQTL/pQTL signal share the same causal variant. H4 is the posterior probability that both traits are associated AND share a causal variant. H4 > 0.8 = strong evidence that gene expression/protein levels drive disease risk. This links genetic variation → gene expression → disease, supporting the target-disease connection.
Top FGFR2 Drugs
Six companies have approved FGFR2-targeting drugs, including EISAI INC, INCYTE CORP, and Eli Lilly.
The presence of multiple companies indicates a moderately competitive landscape with potential entry barriers.
| Drug | Company | Approved | Indications |
|---|---|---|---|
| OFEV | Boehringer Ingelheim | 2014 | 3 |
| PEMAZYRE | INCYTE CORP | 2020 | 2 |
| BALVERSA | Johnson & Johnson | 2019 | 1 |
FGFR2 Drug Modality Landscape
Modalities
Routes of Administration
FGFR2 is amenable to small molecule drugs, with oral options available for convenient dosing.
The absence of other modalities like antibodies or biologics represents a potential whitespace opportunity.
FGFR2 Clinical Trials 686 trials
Phase 1-4 trials started in 2008 or later that test an FDA-approved drug acting on FGFR2. Source: ClinicalTrials.gov. How we count
Completion by Phase
| Phase | Total | Completed | Stopped | Active | Completion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phase 1 | 196 | 126 | 22 | 47 | 85% |
| Phase 2 | 378 | 119 | 69 | 187 | 63% |
| Phase 3 | 94 | 44 | 13 | 37 | 77% |
| Phase 4 | 18 | 11 | 2 | 5 | 85% |
Top Sponsors
By Modality
Top Conditions
Phase 3 Readout Calendar Pro
4 Phase 3 trials testing approved FGFR2 drugs across all sponsors.
Coverage: trials whose intervention is an approved drug targeting FGFR2. Pre-approval candidates with development codes (e.g. AZD0901, MK-7240) are not yet linked. Anchored on CT.gov primary completion date.
FGFR2 Drug Approval Timeline (2012 - 2020)
The first FGFR2-targeting drug was approved in 2012 (STIVARGA), with the most recent approval in 2020 (PEMAZYRE).
The approval timeline suggests a relatively stable market with potential for further innovation.
Pro Intelligence Preview
Deep insights for drug target analysis
Competitive Landscape
- • 6 companies competing
- • Market share by company
Full Drug Portfolio
- • All 6 approved drugs
- • Approval dates & indications
Genetic Validation
- • Full genetic evidence table
- • Effect sizes & directions
Approval Timeline
- • Full 6-drug timeline
- • First-of-modality markers
Clinical Trials Analysis
- • Sponsors: 270 (66 companies)
- • Completion rates by condition
Full summary • All drugs • Genetic evidence • Trials • Timeline
How We Count Trials
- Trials: phase 1-4 interventional trials on ClinicalTrials.gov that started in 2008 or later and test an FDA-approved drug acting on FGFR2. A trial counts if an approved drug acting on FGFR2 is in any arm, including as a comparator, and a trial that tests two such drugs counts once. Trials that test only unapproved drugs are not counted. A trial listed as phase 1/2 counts as phase 1, and phase 2/3 as phase 2.
- Active: recruiting, not yet recruiting, enrolling by invitation, or active and no longer recruiting.
- Completion rate: of the trials that have ended, the share marked Completed rather than Terminated or Withdrawn. Completed means the trial ended as planned; it does not mean the drug worked. Suspended trials are not counted as ended.
- Stopped: terminated or withdrawn. Trials stop for many reasons, including slow enrolment and business decisions, not only safety or efficacy.
- Sponsors: the lead sponsor of each trial. Companies are the sponsors ClinicalTrials.gov classes as industry; the rest are universities, hospitals, cooperative groups, government bodies and individuals.