FDA Nod for J&J Cancer Drug (revised)
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Companies:
Dendreon Corp.
Johnson & Johnson
Medivation, Inc.
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Zacks Equity Research, On Friday May 6, 2011, 7:24 am EDT
Johnson and Johnson (NYSE: JNJ - News) recently announced US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for its prostate cancer therapy, Zytiga (abiraterone acetate). Zytiga, an oral, once-daily medication, gained approval for use in combination with prednisone for the treatment of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) in treatment-experienced patients whose chemotherapy contained docetaxel.
Phase III data on Zytiga showed a significant increase in median survival in patients treated with Zytiga and prednisone compared to patients treated with placebo and prednisone. A 35% reduction in the risk of death (14.8 months vs. 10.9 months) and a 3.9 month difference in median survival was observed in patients treated with Zytiga and prednisone compared to patients on placebo plus prednisone.
Though there is no direct competition at present, Zytiga may one day compete with Dendreon Corporation’s (NasdaqGS: DNDN - News) Provenge for a share of the prostate cancer market. Provenge is a therapeutic vaccine approved for treating mCRPC. Provenge gained approval in April 2010 and was launched in May 2010. Another potential competitor could be Medivation Inc.’s (NasdaqGM: MDVN - News) MDV3100 though the candidate is currently in phase III development.
