Drug Hopeful Eyes Nearsightedness
Vita Reed
Startup Irvine drug developer Valley Forge Pharmaceuticals Inc. is working on a medication that could end a source of anxiety for many school-age children and teenagers: wearing glasses for nearsightedness.
Valley Forge’s pirenzepine gel is intended to reduce the progression of nearsightedness, or myopia, in children ages 8 to 14.
“There are 80 million kids who are myopic by the age of 18,” said Paul Lopez, Valley Forge’s chief executive. “A large piece is Asia,65 million. There are 7 million in the U.S.”
Valley Forge has raised around $8 million in funding so far, according to Lopez, who spent 18 years at various ophthalmic companies before coming to Valley Forge last March.
Valley Forge is one of the portfolio companies of Domain Associates LLC, a venture capital firm with offices in Laguna Niguel and Princeton, N.J.
Domain decided to fund Valley Forge for several reasons, said Brian Dovey, a Domain general partner who works out of Princeton. Those included, among other things, patent protection, a “potentially huge market size” and novelty, he said.
But Valley Forge’s medication could prove to be a marketing challenge because nearsighted children and their parents are accustomed to wearing glasses, Dovey said.
Myopia is characterized by excessive lengthening of the eyeball during childhood. Some studies have found that a parental history of myopia is the strongest risk factor for the development and progression of the condition.
Valley Forge expects to complete phase II clinical studies by July 2002, Lopez said. But it will be some time before the gel comes to market. Valley Forge doesn’t plan to file for pre-market approval with the Food and Drug Administration until 2006 or 2007, Lopez said.
Valley Forge, which employs five people, doesn’t count any sales yet.
“We have adequate funding to make sure that we can identify data (from the clinical trials),” Lopez said.
Valley Forge’s priority is to prove the safety and efficacy of its medication through clinical trials, according to Lopez. But he said the gel, if successful, “could be an attractive product for a larger pharmaceutical company.”
Lopez succeeded company founder John Parrish, who remains on Valley Forge’s board, as chief executive. Lopez’ background includes stints at Eyelab, a Johnson & Johnson company, and what’s now Pharmacia Corp.
,Vita Reed
