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news.Valeant Pharmaceuticals, a multinational specialty pharmaceutical company, has reported promising results at end of treatment, week 48 analysis point in the Phase IIb clinical trial for its antiviral compound, taribavirin, a prodrug of ribavirin in development for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C in conjunction with a pegylated interferon.
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Similar to the treatment week 12 results reported earlier in 2008, the 48-week viral response data continue to show comparable reductions in viral load for weight-based doses of taribavirin and ribavirin. The anemia rate was statistically significantly lower for patients receiving taribavirin in the 20mg/kg and 25mg/kg arms versus the ribavirin control arm.
The Phase IIb trial is a US multi-center, randomized, parallel, open-label study in 278 treatment-naive, genotype 1 patients evaluating taribavirin at 20 mg/kg, 25 mg/kg, and 30 mg/kg per day in combination with pegylated interferon alfa-2b. The control group is being administered weight-based dose ribavirin (800/1000/1200/1400mg daily) and pegylated interferon alfa-2b. Overall treatment duration is 48 weeks with a post-treatment follow-up period of 24 weeks.
Michael Pearson, chairman and CEO of Valeant, said: “We believe that taribavirin will be a promising alternative to ribavirin in the treatment of chronic hepatitis C and, with Valeant’s strategic shift away from the infectious disease market, we plan to out-license this compound in order to maximize its potential for these patients.”