Mercks Investigational Chronic Hepatitis C Combination Therapy MK-5172/MK-8742 Demonstrates Antiviral Activity in Hard-to-Cure Patients with HCV Genotype 1 Infection
Merck has announced interim results from the ongoing C-WORTHy study, a multi-arm Phase II clinical trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of an all-oral, once-daily regimen combining MK-5172, an investigational hepatitis C virus (HCV) NS3/4A protease inhibitor, and MK-8742, an investigational HCV NS5A replication complex inhibitor, among patients with chronic HCV Genotype 1 infection (GT1). Interim analysis of hard-to-cure[1] patients administered MK-5172/MK-8742 with and without ribavirin (RBV) for 12 or 18 weeks showed sustained viral response[2] (SVR), 4 to 8 weeks after the completion of therapy (SVR4/8):
• HCV GT1 infected, treatment-naïve cirrhotic patients, MK-5172/MK-8742 treated — 97% (28/29 and 29/30) for 12 and 18 weeks, and MK-5172/MK-8742 plus RBV — 90% (28/31) and 97% (30/31) for 12 and 18 weeks, respectively.
• HCV GT1 infected prior-null responder patients (with or without cirrhosis), MK-5172/MK-8742 treated — 91% (30/33) and 97% (29/30) for 12 and 18 weeks, respectively, and MK-5172/MK-8742 plus RBV treated 94% (30/32) and 100% (32/32) for the 12 and 18 weeks, respectively.
• Treatment-naïve, non-cirrhotic patients with HCV/HIV co-infection, MK-5172/MK-8742 treated for 12 weeks - 90 percent (26/29) and MK-5172/MK-8742 plus RBV for 12 weeks 97% (28/29).
These data were presented at the 49th Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL), also known as The International Liver Congress 2014 in London, UK.
“There is still a need for further options for the most difficult-to-cure patients, including those with cirrhosis and HCV/HIV co-infection,” said Dr Eric Lawitz, MD, vice president, Scientific and Research Development, The Texas Liver Institute, and clinical professor of medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio. “These findings provide additional clinical evidence regarding the potential of MK-5172/MK-8742 in treating a broad spectrum of HCV patients.”
References
[1] Defined as treatment-naïve patients with liver cirrhosis, prior-null responder patients with and without cirrhosis and patients with HIV/HCV co-infection.
[2] Defined as HCV RNA below the limit of quantification or below the limit of detection at the last visit on record — 4, 8, 12, or 24 weeks after the completion of therapy.
Related News
-
News Pharmapack Awards 2024 Patient-Centric Design Award Winner – Dr Ferrer BioPharma
The 2024 Pharmapack Awards celebrated the best in innovation and design for the pharmaceutical packaging and drug delivery industry on January 24, 2024. -
News Women in Pharma: Minding the Gap at Pharmapack 2024
2024 marks the first year Pharmapack will host a Diversity track dedicated to bridging the gap within the pharmaceutical packaging and drug delivery sector. The track includes a panel discussion on 'Enabling Diversity in the Workplace,' focused... -
News Pharmapack Awards 2024 - Celebrating Packaging and Drug Delivery Innovation
The 2024 Pharmapack Innovation Awards ceremony celebrated the best in pharmaceutical packaging and drug delivery innovation at all levels. The awards were held on January 24, 2024 at the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles. -
News 2024 Pharma Industry Trends Outlook: Collaboration, Market Maturity, and Digital Futures
The annual CPHI Online 2024 Pharma Trends Outlook, in partnership with Arvato Systems, identifies 12 key industry trends shaping the life sciences industry in the coming year. -
News New Novo Nordisk AI hub for drug discovery to open in London, UK
Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk will be opening an AI-based research facility in the heart of London to advance drug discovery operations. -
News BioNTech to begin mRNA vaccine manufacturing in Rwanda by 2025
German biotechnology company BioNTech has stated their intentions to begin production at their mRNA vaccine factory in Rwanda by 2025, which will mark the first foreign mRNA vaccine manufacturing site on the continent of Africa. -
News Women in Pharma: Looking back on 2023 and moving forward to 2024
In this monthly series, we interview women from across the pharmaceutical industry and supply chain to discuss the importance of gender diversity in healthcare, the workplace, and beyond. -
News CPHI Barcelona 2023: Partnering for Success – Managing Outsourcing Relationships to Optimise Manufacturing Operations
During CPHI Barcelona 2023, insightful content sessions offered attendees the chance to explore trending topics with expert speakers and panellists. Here, we summarise what the pharma industry and supply chain are talking about the most.
Position your company at the heart of the global Pharma industry with a CPHI Online membership
-
Your products and solutions visible to thousands of visitors within the largest Pharma marketplace
-
Generate high-quality, engaged leads for your business, all year round
-
Promote your business as the industry’s thought-leader by hosting your reports, brochures and videos within your profile
-
Your company’s profile boosted at all participating CPHI events
-
An easy-to-use platform with a detailed dashboard showing your leads and performance