DuPont Plans to Grab AIDS Doctors Attention at Medical Meeting
Bloomberg News
September 18, 1998, 10:23 a.m. ET
DuPont Plans to Grab AIDS Doctors Attention at Medical Meeting
Wilmington, Delaware, Sept. 18 -- (Bloomberg) -- DuPont Co.
will make an all-out effort next week to convince doctors and
patients that its Sustiva, approved today as the world's first
once-a-day AIDS pill, is a weapon they will want to use in the
fight against HIV.
DuPont is one of scores of companies that will have their
drugs highlighted at the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial
Agents and Chemotherapy, a leading medical conference on
infectious diseases. More than 10,000 people are expected to
attend the ICAAC conference opening Thursday in San Diego.
For DuPont, ICAAC offers a critical opportunity to grab the
attention of leading AIDS doctors just as Sustiva starts U.S.
sales, said James Keeney, a drug industry analyst with ABN Amro.
''It's frequently the cause of product shortfalls if you
don't reach the opinion leaders first,'' Keeney said.
Many already are enamored of the once-a-day drug, which is
easier for patients to take and has fewer side effects than other
anti-HIV treatments.
''People are looking forward to using Sustiva,'' said David
Gilden, editor of Treatment Issues, published by the AIDS
advocacy group GMHC. ''People are taking handfuls of pills two,
three times a day and the schedules get very complicated.
People's lifestyles get totally wrapped around their drug
schedule.''
In addition, patients and doctors are constantly looking for
new drugs to combat HIV, which mutates quickly and learns to
defeat medicines.
$700 Mln Peak Sales
Both factors have spurred many patients to try Sustiva -
even before today's formal regulatory approval. More than 12,000
people, including 9,000 in the U.S., now take Sustiva worldwide
under a program that give expanded access to unapproved drugs.
The drug could reach $500 million in annual sales in its
second year on the market and peak at as much as $700 million,
according to William Fiala, an analyst with Edward Jones.
For DuPont, Sustiva is the start of a plan to remake the
largest U.S. chemical company into one that focuses more on
''life sciences,'' creating new drugs, better seeds and
pesticides.
DuPont may be able to distinguish itself with a very high-
profile drug. At the recent International AIDS Conference in
Geneva, DuPont stole the show with Sustiva, as shares of rival
drugmakers, such as Agouron, slumped.
Keeping Momentum
DuPont will try to keep the momentum going at ICAAC, where
researchers will present a number of studies of the drug,
including its use in combination with Merck's Crixivan and with
Agouron's Viracept. More long-term data will also be available.
The competition isn't backing down, however. Agouron, Merck,
Gilead Sciences Inc. and Glaxo Wellcome Plc will have
presentations on their old and new AIDS drugs. And researchers
will present a pivotal study that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. is
using to apply for approval of its new protease inhibitor.
The conference will also feature a variety of studies on
drugs ranging from antibiotics to an experimental flu pill.
Once again, ICAAC will be a key meeting for Gilead. Aside
from its experimental AIDS drugs, the company's collaboration
with Roche on a flu pill has generated much interest, with
analysts saying a successful drug could have sales topping $1
billion a year.
''That's going to be big stuff,'' said Jonas Alsenas, an
analyst with ING Baring Furman Selz who has a ''strong buy'' on
Gilead. ''There are an awful lot of people who get the flu.''
If new studies at ICAAC are as strong as previous results,
patients could have a treatment that will allow them to cut the
duration of their sickness in half, Alsenas said. ''You could be
back at work in a day or two,'' he said.
Gilead Turnaround?
A strong showing from Foster City, California-based Gilead
at ICAAC could help turn around the company's stock, which has
dropped nearly 10 points since late June, trading today at 24
3/4, as concerns emerged about the potential for one of the
company's experimental anti-HIV drugs to cause kidney problems.
The conference will also highlight new disease threats and
the growing problem of resistance to older antibiotics. Companies
ranging from top drugmakers Eli Lilly & Co., Merck & Co.,
SmithKline Beecham Plc, Pharmacia & Upjohn Inc. and Rhone-Poulenc
SA to the upstart biotechnology firm Cubist Pharmaceuticals Inc.
are trying to tackle the problem with new approaches that will be
showcased.
--Kerry Dooley in Princeton (609) 279-4016 and Kristin Jensen in |
