Roche: New Diabetes Drug Works Better Than Byetta - Study
29 October 2009 - 8:02PM
Dow Jones News
Roche Holding AG (ROG.VX) said Thursday its experimental
diabetes drug taspoglutide worked better than a rival drug sold by
Eli Lilly & Co. (LLY) in lowering blood sugar, according to the
results of a late stage study.
The study marks a small step on the way to possible approval of
the drug, for which Roche has seven additional trials underway.
Roche, based in Basel, acquired the worldwide marketing rights,
excluding Japan and France, to taspoglutide from French drugmaker
Ipsen SA (IPN.FR) in 2006, in a deal that allows Ipsen to retain
co-marketing rights for France if it so wishes.
Roche will present details of the trial, including how much
better taspoglutide worked and details on side effects, at an
upcoming international scientific meeting, the company said.
After 24 weeks of treatment, patients who had been given
taspoglutide experienced a bigger decline in their blood sugar than
those who had been given Byetta, a drug sold jointly by Eli Lilly
and Amylin Pharmaceutical Inc. (AMLN), Roche said. The most
frequently reported side effect from both drugs were nausea and
vomiting.
Roche shares were unchanged at CHF164.10 in early trading
Thursday.
Company Web Site: www.roche.com
-By Anita Greil, Dow Jones Newswires; +41 43 443 8044 ;
anita.greil@dowjones.com