# Catumaxomab

Source: https://onco.cc/drugs/catumaxomab/  
OnCo record `catumaxomab` (Treatment). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Catumaxomab (Korjuny) is an antibody infused into the abdominal cavity to control malignant ascites, the build-up of fluid caused by cancers such as ovarian and stomach cancer, in people whose other treatments have stopped working.

## Summary

Catumaxomab was the first bispecific antibody approved anywhere, authorised in the EU in 2009 as Removab for malignant ascites in EpCAM-positive carcinomas on a randomised trial against paracentesis alone in which puncture-free survival was quadrupled. Its marketing authorisation was withdrawn in 2017 for commercial reasons after the original company failed, and a new authorisation was granted to Korjuny in February 2025 for intraperitoneal treatment of malignant ascites in adults with EpCAM-positive carcinomas not eligible for further systemic anticancer therapy. It is given as four intraperitoneal infusions over about ten days. Cytokine release-type reactions (fever, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain) are almost universal and hepatic enzyme rises are common; it has never been approved in the US.

## Fields

- Kind: Treatment
- Status: approved
- Last checked: 2026-09-10
- Also known as: Removab (2009 to 2017)
- Tags: ema-list; supportive
- Brand: Korjuny
- Modality: Trifunctional bispecific antibody (EpCAM x CD3, rat-mouse hybrid)
- Mechanism: Binds EpCAM on tumour cells and CD3 on T cells while its Fc region engages Fc-gamma receptor-positive accessory cells, killing EpCAM-positive cells in the peritoneal cavity by T-cell cytotoxicity, phagocytosis and antibody-dependent mechanisms.
- Approvals: EU 2009: Malignant ascites in EpCAM-positive carcinomas when standard therapy is unavailable (Removab; withdrawn 2017); EU 2025: Intraperitoneal treatment of malignant ascites in adults with EpCAM-positive carcinomas not eligible for further systemic therapy (Korjuny)

## Sources

- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catumaxomab
- EPAR (EMA): https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/medicines/human/EPAR/korjuny

## Connected records

- cancers: [Colorectal cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/colorectal/), [Gastric & gastro-oesophageal junction cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/gastric/), [Ovarian cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/ovarian/), [Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/pancreatic/)
- technologies: [Bispecific antibodies](https://onco.cc/technologies/bispecific-antibody/), [T-cell engagers (bispecific)](https://onco.cc/technologies/t-cell-engager/)
- targets: [CD3](https://onco.cc/targets/cd3/), [EpCAM](https://onco.cc/targets/epcam/)
- companies: [Lindis Biotech](https://onco.cc/companies/lindis-biotech/)
- trials: [Phase II Study of the Trifunctional Antibody Catumaxomab Administered Intra- and Postoperatively in Patients With Ovarian Cancer](https://onco.cc/trials/nct00563836/), [Randomized, Multicenter, 2-Dose Level. Open-Label, Phase IIa Study With the Intraperitoneally Infused Trifunctional Bispecific Antibody Removab(TM) (Anti-EpCAM x Anti-CD3) to Select the Better Dose Level in Platinum Refractory Epithelial Ovarian Cancer Patients](https://onco.cc/trials/nct00189345/), [Safety and Efficacy Study of Catumaxomab to Treat Ovarian Cancer After a Complete Response to Chemotherapy](https://onco.cc/trials/nct00377429/)

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