Valeant Pharmaceuticals International said Monday its drug to treat hepatitis C liver disease had “encouraging” results in a second-phase clinical trial.
Aliso Viejo-based Valeant’s taribavirin, which also is known as Viramidine, showed a comparable decline in viral load, or the amount of the hepatitis C virus, in patients.
Patients who received taribavirin versus Valeant’s original hepatitis C drug ribivarin had a significantly lower rate of anemia, according to the company.
Valeant said the study involved 278 U.S. patients.
The drug maker is encouraged that the study data showed that weight-based dosing of taribavirin may have a role in treating patients infected with hepatitis C, said J. Michael Pearson, Valeant’s chief executive, in a release.
But Pearson cautioned that the results only represented part of the trial and Valeant planned to use the data “to explore the best options for taribavirin’s continued role in our portfolio, including consideration of partnering options.”
Taribavirin had posted mixed results in earlier trials, and some analysts have been wary of its prospects.
