FDA approves first drug for prophylaxis of CMV infection in bone marrow transplant patients

9 November 2017

The US Food and Drug Administration yesterday approved Prevymis (letermovir) tablets and injection, the first drug indicated to help prevent CMV (cytomegalovirus) infection and disease in adults who have been exposed to CMV and have received an allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell (bone marrow) transplant (HSCT).

The news pushed the shares of the drug’s maker, Merck & Co (NYSE: MRK), up 1.78% to $56.58 by close of trading yesterday.

Merck purchased worldwide rights to develop and commercialize letermovir from AiCuris GmbH in 2012 for around $570 million. The drug is also under review in Europe, where it has been granted orphan designation.

This article is accessible to registered users, to continue reading please register for free. A free trial will give you access to exclusive features, interviews, round-ups and commentary from the sharpest minds in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology space for a week. If you are already a registered user please login. If your trial has come to an end, you can subscribe here.

Try before you buy

Free

7 day trial access

Take a Free Trial

All the news that moves the needle in pharma and biotech
Exclusive features, podcasts, interviews, data analyses and commentary from our global network of life sciences reporters.
Receive The Pharma Letter daily news bulletin, free forever.

Become a subscriber

£820

Or £77 per month

Subscribe Now

Unfettered access to industry-leading news, commentary and analysis in pharma and biotech.
Updates from clinical trials, conferences, M&A, licensing, financing, regulation, patents & legal, executive appointments, commercial strategy and financial results.
Daily roundup of key events in pharma and biotech.
Monthly in-depth briefings on Boardroom appointments and M&A news.
Choose from a cost-effective annual package or a flexible monthly subscription

The Pharma Letter is an extremely useful and valuable Life Sciences service that brings together a daily update on performance people and products. It’s part of the key information for keeping me informed

Chairman, Sanofi Aventis UK