FILE PHOTO: Astellas Pharma's logo is pictured at its headquarters in Tokyo, Japan, December 3, 2019. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

(This December 18 story corrects third paragraph to remove reference to Padcev being the first FDA approved drug for advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer)

(Reuters) - U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Wednesday it approved Astellas Pharma Inc and Seattle Genetics’ experimental drug to treat advanced bladder cancer, about three months ahead of schedule.

Shares of Seattle Genetics were up 6% at $119.05 after the bell.

The drug, Padcev, is approved in the United States for patients with advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer, the companies said.

The drug will treat patients with advanced bladder cancer whose disease has progressed even after treatment with immunotherapy and chemotherapy. (bit.ly/38RgSSf)

The American Cancer Society estimates 17,670 people will die from bladder cancer in the United States this year.

The continued approval of the drug may depend upon verification of clinical benefit in confirmatory trials, the companies said, adding that a late-stage study is underway.

The FDA’s accelerated approval program allows conditional approval of a medicine that fills an unmet medical need for a serious condition.