BioChem: Seroconversion Improves Over Time With Zeffix
July 8, 1999
Dow Jones Newswires
LAVAL, Que. -- BioChem Pharma Inc. (BCHE) said serovconversion is achieved in up to 65% of patients with hepatitis B after three years of treatment with Zeffix, also called lamivudine, according to the latest clinical evidence.
In a news release, BioChem said seroconversion, "the holy grail in the treatment of hepatitis B," is the loss of the hepatitis B virus antigen and gain of antibodies against the virus in the blood - an indicator of long-term clinical improvement.
The company said the 65% rate is almost twice the rate seen after one year of Zeffix treatment. It said the three-year data from a key study on Zeffix will be presented Thursday to more than 700 doctors attending the international Zeffix launch meeting in Hong Kong.
BioChem said Zeffix is the only oral, once-daily treatment for chronic hepatitis B.
It said that in the three-year study, data were assessed at the end of each year. Seroconversion increased each year, from 38% at the end of the first year, to 65% after three years of treatment with Zeffix.
It said seroconversion "is an excellent indicator that long-lasting clinical improvement will occur. Patients with active liver disease from hepatitis B stand an increasing chance of seroconverting and achieving a long-lasting improvement in their condition when treated with Zeffix."
Zeffix is available in the Philippines, South Korea, Hong Kong, Thailand, Pakistan, Canada (as Heptovir), the U.S. (as Epivir-HBV) and Switzerland. It is also approved in China (as Heptodin), Indonesia, New Zealand, Australia, Argentina and Israel. The European Union's Committee for Proprietary Medicinal Products has also given a positive opinion on Zeffix, recommending its approval in the European Union.
Under agreement, BioChem Pharma receives royalties from Glaxo Wellcome PLC (GLX) on sales of its discovery lamivudine for use in both HIV/AIDS (3TC/Epivir/Combivir) and HBV (Zeffix/Epivir-HBV). Glaxo Wellcome has the right to develop, make and sell lamivudine worldwide, except in Canada, where BioChem Pharma and Glaxo Wellcome have formed a commercialization partnership.
Jim |
