UPDATE 1-EU drugs agency backs CV Therapeutic's Latixa

(Adds share price, company comment)

LONDON, April 24 (Reuters) - The European Medicines Agency has recommended approval of CV Therapeutic's (CVTX.O: Quote, Profile, Research) Latixa to treat chronic chest pain, or angina, giving the biotech company access to a potential market bigger than that in the United States.

The company's stock was up 51 cents, or nearly six percent to $9.38 on Nasdaq following the London-based watchdog's decision on Thursday.

Recommendations for marketing approval by the agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) are normally endorsed by the European Commission within a couple of months.

CV Therapeutics said in a statement Europe represents a larger potential market for medical treatment of angina than in the United States.

"With lower rates of intervention and a tremendous unmet need for novel medical approaches to angina across the EU, we believe ranolazine could become a significant therapy in routine clinical practice," said Robin Bhattacherjee, executive director of CV Therapeutics Europe. (Reporting by Michael Kahn)