WASHINGTON (AP) – San Francisco-based drugmaker Ligand Pharmaceuticals Inc. said its drug Promacta posted successful results in a late-stage trial for blood-related complications of hepatitis C.
Ligand said its partner GlaxoSmithKline will release the results at an upcoming medical meeting. The study is one of two under way that involve patients with hepatitis-related thrombocytopenia, which causes abnormally low platelet levels in the blood.
Promacta was originally approved in 2008 for a rare condition called chronic immune thrombocytopenic purpura, in which the body attacks its own platelets. The condition, which can cause bruising and bleeding after minor injuries, affects about 140,000 people in the U.S. and Europe.
Promacta was discovered by Ligand of La Jolla, Calif., and is marketed by London-based drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline.
Date: July 26, 2011
Source: Associated Press
Filed Under: Drug Discovery
