An FDA advisory panel unanimously recommended the agency approve Merck’s (NYSE: [[ticker:MRK]]) boceprevir (Victrelis) for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 1 infection in combination with standard therapy, according to a press release. Although the FDA is not required to follow the advice of its advisory panels, it usually does. And if the drug is approved in mid-May, when the company expects the decision, Wall Street analysts will be thrilled: Six analysts surveyed by Bloomberg predicted sales of the drug will be more than $604 million in 2013.
Author: Arlene Weintraub
Arlene is an award-winning journalist specializing in life sciences and technology. She was previously a senior health writer based out of the New York City headquarters of BusinessWeek, where she wrote hundreds of articles that explored both the science and business of health. Her freelance pieces have been published in USA Today, US News & World Report, Technology Review, and other media outlets. Arlene has won awards from the New York Press Club, the Association of Health Care Journalists, the Foundation for Biomedical Research, and the American Society of Business Publication Editors. Her book about the anti-aging industry, Selling the Fountain of Youth, was published by Basic Books in September 2010.
View all posts by Arlene Weintraub
