Thursday January 31, 7:32 am Eastern Time
Press Release
SOURCE: InterMune, Inc.
InterMune Relaunches Infergen for Hepatitis C Infections
BRISBANE, Calif., Jan. 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- InterMune, Inc. (Nasdaq: ITMN - news) announced today that the Company has relaunched Infergen® (Interferon alfacon-1) for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C infections. Effective immediately, InterMune's recently expanded sales force will focus on hepatologists and support them in the safe and appropriate use of Infergen in the treatment of hepatitis C. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is known as the ``silent epidemic,'' affecting nearly four million people in the United States.
Infergen, also known as consensus interferon (CIFN), is a bioengineered type I interferon alfa is FDA approved for the treatment of patients with chronic hepatitis C infections.
``Infergen provides hepatologists with another treatment option for the nearly 50 percent of HCV patients who will either fail or relapse from initial therapy,'' said W. Scott Harkonen, M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of InterMune. ``The continued unmet medical need for effective, advanced HCV treatments will be a key driver of the near-term revenue growth of Infergen. At the same time, we are also aggressively developing a pegylated form of Infergen that we believe will enable us to capture a significant portion of the maximum $3 billion U.S. market opportunity for HCV, once that product becomes available in 2005.''
Recently, the Company reported positive interim results from a Phase IV clinical trial comparing the use of Infergen plus ribavirin to the use of interferon alfa-2b plus ribavirin (Rebetron(TM)) for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C infections. Patients treated with Infergen in combination with ribavirin achieved a sustained virology response (SVR) of 56% compared with an SVR of 31% in patients treated with Rebetron. Results of the study were presented in November 2001 at the 52nd Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.
Physicians and patients can obtain additional information about Infergen by visiting infergen.com .
About Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C is a blood-borne virus that is a major cause of progressive chronic liver disease in the United States, according to the National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). It accounts for about 60 to 70 percent of chronic hepatitis. The CDC estimates that almost four million Americans are infected with the virus. Hepatitis C causes an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 deaths annually in the United States and is a major cause of liver failure requiring liver transplantation.
About Infergen
Infergen is indicated for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in patients 18 years of age or older with compensated liver disease who have anti-HCV serum antibodies and/or the presence of HCV RNA. Infergen is contraindicated in patients with known hypersensitivity to alfa interferons, E.coli-derived products, or any component of the product. Severe psychiatric adverse events may manifest in patients receiving therapy with alfa interferons. Caution should be used when administrating Infergen to patients with pre-existing cardiac disease. For full Infergen prescribing information, please refer to infergen.com .
About InterMune
InterMune is a commercially driven biopharmaceutical company focused on the commercialization, development and applied research of life-saving therapies for pulmonary disease, infectious disease and cancer. For additional information about InterMune, please visit www.intermune.com. |
