One small step for an FDA advisory panel, one leap forward for biotech company Human Genome Sciences (Nasdaq:HGSI).
Late Tuesday, an FDA advisory panel voted by the surprisingly wide margin of 13-2 to recommend approval of HGSI's Benlysta for the treatment of lupus. This drug, which top-tier pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE:GSK) has been developing under license from HGSI, would represent the first new lupus drug in more than 50 years - a potentially big step forward for the treatment of a disease that is life-altering (and life-threatening) but still not well-understood by doctors or scientists. (For more, see Measuring The Medicine Makers.)
A More Compassionate Panel?
Benlysta's progress toward approval was not smooth or worry-free for HGSI investors. The FDA spooked the market a bit a few days ago when the agency released its pre-panel meeting assessment of the lupus drug candidate. Although these reviews are supposed to be tough, critical, and generally negative, it did focus on what it called "mild" efficacy and the fact that the drug does not seem to benefit African Americans much at all.
Benlysta's progress toward approval was not smooth or worry-free for HGSI investors. The FDA spooked the market a bit a few days ago when the agency released its pre-panel meeting assessment of the lupus drug candidate. Although these reviews are supposed to be tough, critical, and generally negative, it did focus on what it called "mild" efficacy and the fact that the drug does not seem to benefit African Americans much at all.
Nevertheless, the panel seemed to acknowledge that mild efficacy is still efficacy and that the impact of the drug varied with each patient. In other words, it may be significantly effective for some patients, and the side-effects did not outweigh that potential benefit.
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