Merck to Pull Boceprevir from US Market by the End of 2015
Merck & Co. is set to voluntarily discontinue manufacturing and distributing the hepatitis C therapy boceprevir in the United States by the end of this year. The company noted that the decision was based on "scientific advancement, changes in treatment practices, and the consequent reduction in the demand" for the product in the United States, according to the FDA’s Web site.
Merck indicated that the therapy, which was approved in 2011, will be supplied to wholesalers from existing inventories through the end of this year to ensure that patients currently using the drug will be able to complete up to 48 weeks of treatment. The drugmaker recommended that doctors start new patients on an alternate treatment regimen.
The company's decision follows the US approvals of several new hepatitis C treatments, including ledipasvir/sofosbuvir and ombitasvir/paritaprevir/ritonavir.
Merck also said it has plans to expedite the FDA filing for another hepatitis C therapy, which combines the NS3/4A protease inhibitor grazoprevir and the NS5A inhibitor elbasvir.—Kerri Fitzgerald
