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Roche's Diabetes Dreams Fade as Taspo Data Deteriorates EP Vantage submits:As anticipated, Roche’s (RHHBY.PK) huge phase III taspoglutide clinical programme was a dominant feature at this year’s American Diabetes Association (ADA) conference. What was wholly unexpected, as recently as two weeks ago, was that the data would prompt speculation that the end is nigh for the product. The fall from grace for taspoglutide, a drug earmarked as the fourth GLP-1 agonist to reach the market but forecast to be one of the most successful commercially, has been remarkably swift (see table below). A presentation to the financial community Monday night, when Roche confirmed that the hypersensitivity reactions were anaphylactic in nature, appears to have convinced many analysts that the chances of the drug reaching the market have fallen dramatically. Doctors at the ADA were more cautious in their conclusions, but it is hard to believe that taspoglutide is going to play as significant a role in the future GLP-1 market as previously thought.Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
Vivus's Obesity Drug Raises Familiar Questions Derek Lowe submits: One big story from last week was the FDA advisory panel's "No" decision on Qnexa, the drug-combo obesity therapy developed by Vivus (VVUS). This is the one that's a combination of phentermine and topiramate, both of which have been around for a long time. And clinical trials showed that patients could indeed lose weight on the drug (with the required diet and exercise) - but also raised a lot of questions about safety. And it's safety that's going to always be a worry with any obesity drug, even once you get past the (rather large) hurdle of showing efficacy. That's what took the Fen-Phen combination off the market, and what torpedoed Acomplia (rimonabant) and the other CB-1 compounds before they'd even been property launched. The FDA panel basically agreed that Qnexa helps with weight loss, but couldn't decide how bad the side effects might be in a wider patient population, and whether they'd be worth it:Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
Swapping Out a Deadly Gene In a boost to the resurgent field of gene therapy, a technique that fixed a defective gene has allowed a patient with a blood disorder to avoid blood transfusions for more than two years. online.wsj.com |
Plavix Worries May Be Overblown Worries over the risk of combining the blockbuster blood thinner Plavix with certain heartburn pills may be overblown, a new study suggests. online.wsj.com |