On Nov. 10, 2015, Genentech announed that its drug Cotellic (cobimetinib) was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of people with BRAF V600E or V600K mutation-positive unresectable or metastatic melanoma in combination with Zelboraf – (vemurafenib).

The FDA approval was based on results from the Phase III coBRIM study, which showed Cotellic plus Zelboraf reduced the risk of disease worsening or death (progression-free survival; PFS) by about half. Cotellic and Zelboraf were not used to treat melanoma with a normal BRAF gene.