GSK chronic hepatitis B treatment hits goal in two studies

(Sharecast News) - GSK on Wednesday said its potential chronic hepatitis B treatment had met primary endpoints in two trials that covered 1,800 patients from 29 countries. The drug, called bepirovirsen, produced functional cure rates that were "significantly higher" when combined with standard care compared with standard of care alone, the company added.

"CHB is a major health challenge affecting over 250 million people worldwide and is the leading cause of liver cancer. The current standard of care ... often requires lifelong therapy and the functional cure rates remain low, typically only 1%."

"Today's result supports our plans to progress bepirovirsen as a treatment and also continue its development as a backbone in future sequential therapies. We're pleased by this major advance in our expanding hepatology pipeline, aimed to transform outcomes in liver disease," said GSK's chief scientific officer Tony Wood.

Full results will be submitted for presentation at an upcoming scientific congress, published in a peer-reviewed journal and used to support regulatory submissions to health authorities worldwide, he added.

"If approved, bepirovirsen has the potential to become the first finite, six-month therapeutic option for CHB and to serve as a backbone for future sequential treatment strategies."

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com