By Adam Feuerstein
BOSTON (TheStreet) -- An early peek at data from a closely watched mid-stage study combining hepatitis C drugs from Bristol-Myers Squibb(BMY) and Gilead Sciences(GILD) has leaked in advance of the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) annual meeting.
Ninety-three percent of genotype 1 hepatitis C patients treated with Bristol's daclatasvir and Gilead's GS-7977 has undetectable viral levels after 12 weeks of treatment, according to a research note published Monday by Jefferies analyst Thomas Wei.
Wei called the end-of-treatment response to daclatasvir-GS-7977 "encouraging" and "positive."
These data from Bristol and Gilead were supposedly embargoed by EASL and were therefore not made available to the public when research abstracts for the EASL meeting were posted online on April 4.
In an email to clients Monday, Jefferies said the Bristol-Gilead abstract was "briefly posted" on EASL's web site over the weekend before being taken down.
Officials with EASL have not responded to questions regarding.......
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GS-7977/daclatasvir -Bristol-Gilead Hepatitis C Drug
ReplyDeleteYes it is hard to believe in this day in age, when there appears to be as close to a cure for a chronic desiese such as Hep-c, that it would be delayed or not even developed purly due to two companies not being creative enough in how to figure out a win-win deal that wouls satisfy all, and could have the potential to bennifit each of the independant companies well beyond just the collaboration on an effective Hep-C therapy that could be made available in the very near term.
I am all for the profit motivator and believe we as consumers are usuually the bennificiaries of competition. However, this is a unique example, with parties who seem unmotivated to get creative to find an even better financial solution than colaborating on the Daclatsvir and GS 9799. However, even the collaboration in the mean time would save lives, and no doubt many of them.
The whole idea of treatment for Hep-c has been lingering in the backround for way too long. Prior to the catastrophy of 9-11 and the very real national security risk that followed, there was significant effort, time and attention focused on solving the Hep-C issue. However, for obvious reasons that was diverted at that time, and much of the funding has not been refocused on Hep-C until more recently. The mindshare,focus and attention fell away from Hep-c research to examine Anthrax and biological agents.
Nothing can be done about that now, and no judgment needs to be passed as to the appropriatness of those decisions, they just were. However, we are clearly at a different point.
Today, It seems as though we have a very promising potential cure for some humanbeings infected with Hep-C, and at least a highly efficatious treatment for others. However, this time the choice is not about national security, or putting others at risk, the challenge is simply about getting two companies to work together with the FDA's cooperation.
To me this seems like a no brainer, we are criticle of children watching violence on TV, yet we are standind by while they get to see real life violence and death simply because two companies don't want to work together. Worst of all I am convinst that if they could get creative enough they would both end up the bennificiarieces as would the Hep-C patients.
Bristol and Gilead if your listening, I have deep business experience and have run companies al over the world, I am also deeply vested in this issue....If you ever wanted to sit down for a day and see what common ground there might be I'd love to be present when you find the way to give the World life and your shareholders excellerated profits!
Curtis Nelson curtis@curtisone.com