Abbott Labs rises on hepatitis C drug data
Posted at: 10/15/2012 11:13 AM
By: The Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) - Abbott Laboratories says its experimental hepatitis C drug regimen cured 99 percent of patients with the most common and hardest-to-treat type of the disease in a midstage study.
Abbott says 99 percent of patients who took its three-drug regimen and the drugs Ritonavair and ribavirin had undetectable virus levels after 12 weeks of treatment.
The company says it observed a 93 percent cure rate in a group of patients who were not helped by other treatments.
Patients in the trial had genotype 1 hepatitis C, which is the most common type in the Western world and the hardest to treat.
The regimen did not include interferon, a standard component of hepatitis C therapy that causes severe side effects.
Abbott shares gained $2.63, or 3.8 percent, to $71.91 in midday trading.
(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
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