* Says drug also got EU orphan drug status

* To advance into a pivotal trial later this year

March 1 - Ariad Pharmaceuticals Inc (ARIA.O) said its experimental cancer drug, AP24534, received orphan drug designation from U.S. health regulators, sending its shares up 8 percent in pre-market trade.

The drug, which is being developed for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), also got orphan drug designation from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for CML and acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's orphan drug status is reserved for new therapies that are being developed to treat diseases or conditions that affect fewer than 200,000 people in the United States and grants the drug developers seven years of marketing exclusivity.

The company also said it plans to advance the drug, currently in early stage studies, into a pivotal trial later this year.

Shares of the company were up 7.5 percent at $2.73 in pre-market trade on Monday. They closed at $2.54 Friday on Nasdaq. (Reporting by Krishnakali Sengupta in Bangalore; Editing by Vinu Pilakkott)