| |
ViroPharma, Wyeth stop development of hepatitus C drug HCV-796
|
| |
| |
Associated Press 04.16.08, 6:45 PM ET
EXTON, Pa. -
Drug maker ViroPharma Inc. on Wednesday said that for safety reasons, it will discontinue development of a hepatitis C treatment candidate it had been developing with Wyeth Pharmaceuticals.
In August, the companies said they would stop dosing patients in a mid-stage clinical trial of the drug candidate, known as HCV-796.
The FDA found 8 percent of patients receiving the drug candidate in combination with other drugs had elevated liver enzymes, which could indicate liver disease. Without HCV-796, the rate was 1 percent.
"Significant activities were undertaken to determine a clear path forward for HCV-796; however, the risk associated with potential hepatotoxicity ultimately posed too high of a hurdle to merit further development," said Vincent Milano, ViroPharma (nasdaq: VPHM - news - people ) president and chief executive, in a statement.
ViroPharma and Wyeth (nyse: WYE - news - people ) do not expect to collaborate on future development of hepatitis C treatment candidates, the companies said.
Shares of ViroPharma fell 57 cents, or 5.9 percent, to $9.05 in aftermarket activity. The stock earlier slipped 22 cents, or 2.2 percent, to end regular trading at $9.62.
Wyeth shares rose 18 cents to close at $44.23.
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
