DEB025 belongs to a new class of drugs called cyclophilin inhibitors and offers an effective treatment option across HCV genotypes, with a high barrier to resistance.
The 12-week trial showed that around 49% of the patients on DEB025 plus ribavirin achieved viral clearance (negative HCV RNA) as early as week six.
One third of patients (32%) receiving DEB025 alone also achieved viral clearance after six weeks.
However, 97% of patients with viral clearance who continued to receive interferon-free DEB025 plus ribavirin maintained this viral clearance up to week 12.
Novartis licensed DEB025 from Debiopharm Group, an independent biopharmaceuticals company based in Switzerland.