FDA OKs Another Hepatitis C Therapy
Wed Oct 16, 2002  9:28 PM ET

WASHINGTON (AP) - Hepatitis C patients won another option to treat the dangerous liver disease Wednesday: Hoffman-La Roche Inc. announced the government has approved its once-a-week injection called Pegasys.



Pegasys is a longer-acting version of the longtime hepatitis treatment interferon-alpha. But it's not the first. Competitor Schering-Plough Corp. won Food and Drug Administration (news - web sites) approval to sell its once-a-week hepatitis shot, Peg-Intron, almost two years ago.

Roche plans to debut Pegasys with a twist: The first 15,000 patients whose doctors prescribe Pegasys before the end of the year will get a three-month free trial of the shots. Roche says by the end of three months, doctors can tell which patients are likely to benefit from Pegasys and thus should continue taking it, and which should stop.

Roche didn't reveal what it will charge for Pegasys, but other leading hepatitis treatments cost from $500 to $1,500 a month.