Interim Data from Study of Merck's Investigational Hepatitis C Treatment to be Presented at The Liver Meeting

Merck (MSD outside the US and Canada) has announced the presentation of interim data from the C-SWIFT study exploring the potential of a candidate triple-therapy regimen consisting of the fixed-dose combination of grazoprevir/elbasvir (MK-5172/MK-8742, MK-5172A), the company’s investigational NS3/4A protease inhibitor and NS5A inhibitor, in combination with sofosbuvir, a nucleotide (NS5B) inhibitor for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection.

Preliminary findings in treatment-naïve HCV genotype 1- (GT1) infected non-cirrhotic patients, following 6 and 4 weeks of treatment, and patients with cirrhotic disease, following 8 and 6 weeks of treatment, will be presented by Dr Eric Lawitz, Vice President, Scientific and Research Development, The Texas Liver Institute, San Antonio, TX and C-SWIFT lead investigator. This poster presentation is part of a late-breaking abstract session at the 65th American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) Annual Meeting, also known as The Liver Meeting.

“These interim data provide a compelling proof-of-concept for the potential of an 8- or 6-week triple therapy course in treatment-naive patients with genotype 1 disease, including cirrhotic patients,” said Dr Lawitz. “These findings will inform the design of larger studies aimed at understanding the potential of short-duration triple therapy across multiple patient types.”

“Our goal is to establish a simple, effective, well-tolerated regimen that is applicable across the diverse population of patients with HCV,” said Dr Eliav Barr, Vice President, infectious diseases, Merck Research Laboratories. “The preliminary data provide us with the confidence to initiate our C-CREST study to evaluate a triple combination comprising Merck’s investigational candidates from three major therapeutic classes of HCV medicines.”