CHUGAI LAUNCHES HEPATITIS C ANTIVIRAL IN JAPAN

Chugai Pharmaceutical announced it has launched the hepatitis C drug Copegus in Japan, following the listing of the drug on the National Health Insurance price list. The price is listed at approximately $6.91 per tablet.

Copegus is an antiviral ribavirin developed by Roche for use in combination with Pegasys for treating chronic hepatitis C. In Japan, Copegus obtained approval in January, according to Chugai. The Japanese drugmaker is part of the Roche group.

In a Japanese Phase III 48-week clinical study, the sustained virological response was 59.4 percent in the group of patients receiving the combination of Pegasys and Copegus, which was significantly higher compared with the 24.0 percent response in the Pegasys monotherapy group.

The drug is approved for patients with genotype 1b hepatitis C, which is the most common type in Japan, the company said. Specifically, it is indicated for patients who have a high viral load and who have already been treated with Interferon.