Vertex Ends Clinical Trial of Dual Telaprevir plus VX-222 Regimen / Experts Devise Roadmap for Development of Direct-acting Hepatitis C Drugs

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Vertex Ends Clinical Trial of Dual Telaprevir plus VX-222 Regimen

SUMMARY› Vertex Pharmaceuticals announced last month that it is discontinuing a

clinical trial arm that was testing a 2-drug regimen of the hepatitis C virus

(HCV) protease inhibitor telaprevir plus the HCV polymerase inhibitor VX-222,

after preliminary results showed that people taking the dual combination were

more likely to experience viral breakthrough. The company will continue to test

telaprevir plus VX-222 in combination with pegyalted interferon/ribavirin and

ribavirin alone.

Experts Devise Roadmap for Development of Direct-acting Hepatitis C Drugs

SUMMARY› A group of medical experts, government regulatory officials,

pharmaceutical company representatives, and patient advocates met in early

December to discuss a promising new approach to hepatitis C treatment and

produce a " roadmap " for development and implementation of direct-acting

antiviral agents -- including how best to test and use these new drugs in

combination regimens, and their use in children. The first agents of this type

are expected to be approved in 2011.