MSD’s antiviral drug hits endpoint targets in Phase III trials

pharmafile | October 20, 2016 | News story | Business Services, Manufacturing and Production, Medical Communications, Research and Development, Sales and Marketing AiCuris, MSD, Merck, bone marrow, letermovir, transplant 

MSD, known as Merck in the US, released news of the successful meeting of its primary endpoints in its Phase III trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of letermovir.

Letermovir is an investigational once-daily treatment that is administered in either an oral tablet or through an IV formulation.  It is a member of a new class of non-nucleoside CMV inhibitors and inhibits viral replication by targeting the viral terminase complex. The drug will be used in the prevention of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection in high-risk bone marrow transplant patients.

The measure that the drug had reached its primary outcome was the percentage of patients with clinically-significant CMV infection through the 24 weeks after they had had a bone marrow transplant. More details are expected to be released at a future scientific meeting.

“There is an unmet need for therapeutic options in the prevention of CMV infection in high-risk allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients,” said Dr. Roy Baynes, senior vice president of clinical development, Merck Research Laboratories. “Merck is pleased this pivotal Phase 3 study with letermovir met its primary endpoint. We thank the patients and families who participated in this study”.

Merck attained the worldwide rights to develop and market the drug from AiCuris back in 2012, in a deal worth a potential $442.5 million.

 Ben Hargreaves

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