Pfizer Adds to Streak of Deals in Gene Therapies -- WSJ
March 21 2019 - 2:02AM
Dow Jones News
By Denise Roland
This article is being republished as part of our daily
reproduction of WSJ.com articles that also appeared in the U.S.
print edition of The Wall Street Journal (March 21, 2019).
Pfizer Inc. has agreed to pay as much as EUR560 million ($636
million) for the rights to gene therapies under development at
French company Vivet Therapeutics, as it seeks to build its
pipeline in this cutting-edge treatment.
The U.S. drugmaker said Wednesday it had paid EUR45 million
upfront for a 15% stake in Vivet. Further payments, which include
the potential acquisition of Vivet, are dependent on the progress
of the French company's experimental therapies.
Gene therapies, which introduce new DNA into the body to address
diseases caused by a single faulty gene, are attracting attention
for their ability to cure intractable diseases. In the past month,
both Roche Holding AG and Biogen Inc. have made bets on gene
therapy.
Closely held Vivet's most advanced program is a gene therapy for
Wilson disease, a rare, inherited liver disorder that causes the
buildup of copper in the body. It requires lifelong treatment and
can be fatal unless treated with a liver transplant. Vivet's
program, dubbed VTX-801, is scheduled to start human trials next
year.
Pfizer has made a series of investments to build its presence in
gene therapy. Unlike rivals Novartis AG and Roche, which have
recently opted to acquire gene-therapy developers outright, it has
struck partnerships that grant it the rights to specific programs
at smaller companies.
Pfizer is developing a gene therapy for hemophilia B with Spark
Therapeutics Inc., which was recently acquired by Roche, and
another for hemophilia A with California-based Sangamo Therapeutics
Inc. It also has programs of its own at earlier stages of
development.
Questions remain about the affordability of gene therapies. Some
of these treatments are likely to command seven-figure price tags.
Drug companies say these one-time treatments represent good value
when compared with the alternatives, which usually involve lifelong
therapy or organ or stem-cell transplants.
Health systems aren't yet set up to deal with high one-time
prices for treatments, but new models such as installment-based
payments could address concerns about costs.
Write to Denise Roland at Denise.Roland@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 21, 2019 02:47 ET (06:47 GMT)
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