Author: PharmaTimes

Merck & Co and Vertex Pharmaceuticals say that they have begun a Phase I clinical trial of their anti-cancer agent, VX-680, in patients with solid tumours. Vertex saw its share price climb by more than 7% during trading on the Nasdaq on the news yesterday.

Hubertus Erlen, chief executive of Germany’s Schering AG, is expecting a new anti-cancer agent – PTK/ZK – currently under development with Novartis, to become a blockbuster drug, with annual sales in excess of one billion euros.

Wyeth has lost the second phase of a two-phase trial, with the judge ruling in favour of three women who claim to have suffered heart valve damage as a result of taking the company’s now withdrawn Pondimin (fenfluramine) diet drug.

Forest Laboratories, which last month cut its outlook for the full-year 2005 as a result of generic competition to its top-selling antidepressant, Celexa (citalopram) [[02/11/04e]], says that it is expecting its third quarter performance to exceed current expectations by around 15% as a result of stronger drug sales.

The world’s largest pharmaceutical company, Pfizer, has signed a research collaboration with biosciences firm, Sangamo, for the production of enhanced proteins.