Bristol-Myers Garners Approval for Melanoma Drug

Bristol-Myers Squibb won U.S. approval on Friday for the first drug shown to extend the lives of patients with a deadly form of skin cancer.

Shares of the company rose 2 percent to $26.97 after the Food and Drug Administration announced clearance of the drug under the brand name Yervoy for patients with advanced melanoma. The medicine's generic name is ipilimumab.

A Thomson Reuters consensus forecast of four analysts calls for ipilimumab sales to reach about $820 million in 2015.

The FDA said it was requiring steps to inform doctors and patients about risks of the drug "due to the unusual and severe side effects," including fatal autoimmune reactions.

((lisa.richwine@thomsonreuters.com; + 1 202 310-5691; Reuters Messaging: lisa.richwine.reuters.com@reuters.net))