GSK and Theravance’s Anoro gets positive EMA panel backing for COPD

The European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has recommended marketing authorization for umeclidinium/vilanterol (UMEC/VI) under the proposed brand name Anoro.

The drug, under development by UK pharma giant GlaxoSmithKline (LSE: GSK) and US partner Theravance (Nasdaq: THRX), is recommended by the CHMP as a once-daily, maintenance bronchodilator treatment to relieve symptoms in adult patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

$2 billion a year sales forecast by 2018

Late last year, Anoro Ellipta was approved for use in appropriate patients with COPD by both the US Food and Drug Administration (The Pharma Letter December 19, 2013) and Health Canada. Anoro is expected to generate sales of more than $2 billion a year by 2018, according to the average estimate of six analysts polled by Thomson Reuters. Analysts polled by Bloomberg suggest sales could reach $2.7 billion by that year.