An Irvine drug maker, Spectrum Pharmaceuticals Inc., has said that it got regulatory approval for an expanded use of a cancer drug.

Spectrum said that the FDA approved Zevalin as an early treatment for a blood cancer, in patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The drug was used previously on patients whose tumors did not respond to other treatments.

Zevalin is radioactive which is why it is very difficult to use. This is also the reason why it has not been very successful commercially.

Spectrum Chief Executive Rajesh Shrotriya told the Street.com investor Web site said, “got everything that we wanted from the FDA and more.”

Spectrum is the fourth drug making company that to have owned Zevalin and had sales of $11million last year. It was first approved in the year 2001.

He also informed that Spectrum will hire many more sales representatives for Zevalin to increase its sales after relaunching it this year.

Spectrum's shares have gone up by 10 percent for the week on a market value of about $350 million.