CAMBRIDGE, Mass., March 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The FDA has informed
Biogen, Inc. (Nasdaq: BGEN) that Rebif's labeling does not enable Serono to
make a general claim for clinical superiority over AVONEX(R), Biogen said
today. FDA's Chief Counsel told Biogen that if Serono makes such broad claims
not supported by the labeling he will take enforcement action. The approval
letter for Rebif specifically prohibits such claims.
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19990824/BIOLOGO )
Rebif Approval Based on Limited, Short-Term Benefit
After carefully reviewing the FDA's decision on Rebif, Biogen said the
approval is based on limited findings from a short-term study. As FDA makes
clear, "This study was not designed to assess the broad range of actions of
Rebif. It was designed to address the requirements of orphan drug regulations
to gain early marketing approval."
"Now that we have studied the approved label, the orphan drug decision and
the existing 48-week data from the EVIDENCE trial, it is eminently clear that
Rebif was admitted onto the U.S. market because of a small benefit versus
AVONEX on relapse rate at 24 weeks that does not persist during the second 24
weeks of the study. Importantly, safety data from this study did not
demonstrate a benefit for Rebif," said Burt Adelman, Biogen's Executive Vice
President for Research and Development.
"Since MS is a life-long disease, the number one goal of MS therapy is to
reduce the long-term accumulation of disability. Data describing Rebif
clearly show that the short-term effect on relapse rate does not result in an
improved long-term impact on disability progression versus AVONEX. In fact,
the EVIDENCE study does not support any conclusion regarding effects on the
accumulation of physical disability. AVONEX has been shown to slow the
accumulation of disability by 37 percent when compared to placebo," Dr.
Adelman continued.
Favorable AVONEX Safety Profile Ignored
The approval decision also did not consider the comparative safety
profiles of AVONEX and Rebif. Marlene Haffner, Director of the Office of
Orphan Products Development stated, "The difference in adverse events between
AVONEX and Rebif is real. For example, the injection-site necrosis observed
with Rebif is not observed with AVONEX." But the Agency decided that an
inferior safety profile was not relevant when the exclusivity was being broken
based on an efficacy measure.
Leading Neurologists Raise Concerns About Long-Term Rebif Treatment
Leading neurologists also raised concerns about Rebif's propensity to
generate higher rates of neutralizing antibodies -- a critical, but sometimes
overlooked, difference between MS therapies. Neutralizing antibodies develop
during therapy and can block useful drug action and reduce long-term efficacy.
The long-term PRISMS study on Rebif documented that "efficacy decreased with
neutralizing antibody formation."
"The incidence of generating neutralizing antibodies is much lower for
AVONEX than it is for Rebif," said Dr. Timothy Vartanian, MD, Ph.D. Dr.
Vartanian is Director, MS Treatment Center, Department of Neurology, Beth
Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, and Assistant Professor of Neurology
at the Harvard Medical School. He indicated that in the EVIDENCE trial, the
incidence of neutralizing antibodies was 2 percent for AVONEX and 24 percent
for Rebif.
"I don't think that Rebif is clinically superior to Avonex," said William
H. Stuart, MD, Medical Director of the MS Center of Atlanta. "You have to
factor into any drug that you use over ten years the concepts of side effects,
of compliance, of neutralizing antibodies, of how the drug is taken."
Rebif Pricing About 30 Percent Higher Than AVONEX
Serono's announced pricing for Rebif is about 30 percent higher than
AVONEX. During its lengthy efforts to break Biogen's orphan drug exclusivity,
Serono met frequently with legislators and patient groups, positioning itself
for entry into the U.S. market as a lower cost alternative.
About AVONEX
AVONEX is for the treatment of relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis to
slow the accumulation of physical disability and decrease the frequency of
clinical exacerbations. It is approved to reduce relapses and slow the
progression of disability. It is believed that AVONEX works by slowing down
the underlying disease process in relapsing forms of MS. AVONEX is taken just
once a week because it is an intramuscular (IM) injection. Because AVONEX is
injected directly into the muscle, it is released slowly into the bloodstream.
IM injections allow effective amounts of AVONEX to stay in the body longer,
thus not requiring frequent injections.
The most common side effects associated with AVONEX treatment are flu-like
symptoms, muscle ache, fever and chills. AVONEX should be used with caution
in people with depression and in people with seizure disorders. AVONEX should
not be used by pregnant women. People with cardiac disease should be closely
monitored. Routine periodic blood chemistry and hematology tests are
recommended during treatment with AVONEX.
About Biogen, Inc.
Biogen, Inc., winner of the U.S. National Medal of Technology, is a
biotechnology company principally engaged in discovering and developing drugs
for human healthcare through genetic engineering. Headquartered in Cambridge,
MA, the Company's revenues are generated from U.S. and European sales of
AVONEX(R) (Interferon beta-1a) for treatment of relapsing forms of multiple
sclerosis, (Please see full prescribing information at
http://www.avonex.com.), and from the worldwide sales by licensees of a number
of products, including alpha interferon and hepatitis B vaccines and
diagnostic products. Biogen's research and development activities are focused
on novel products to treat inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, neurological
diseases, cancer, fibrosis and congestive heart failure. The Company
maintains active clinical research programs in protein therapeutics, small
molecules, genomics and gene therapy. For copies of press releases and
additional information about the Company, please consult Biogen's homepage on
the World Wide Web at http://www.biogen.com.
AVONEX(R) (Interferon beta-1a) is a registered trademark of Biogen, Inc.
Media Contact:
Kathleen O'Donnell
Associate Director, Public Affairs
Biogen, Inc.
Tel: (617) 679-2837
For more information, visit:
http://www.biogen.com or
http://www.actionone.com/clients/biogen
Investment Community Contact:
Elizabeth Woo
Director, Investor Relations
Biogen, Inc.
Tel: (617) 679-2822
SOURCE Biogen, Inc.
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CONTACT:
Media Contact: Kathleen O'Donnell, Associate
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Relations of Biogen, Inc., +1-617-679-2822
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