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DewDiligence

09/26/11 1:24 PM

#127354 RE: bellweather1 #127352

Maybe. Tasigna and Sprycel have shown statsig superiority to Gleevec in the first-line setting, but the CML market has proven to be sticky—see #msg-65404601.
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biomaven0

09/26/11 1:39 PM

#127355 RE: bellweather1 #127352

The other 2nd line agents are pretty clearly somewhat superior efficacy-wise to Gleevec based on head-to-head trials. All that Gleevec has going for it is much more long-term data and greater familiarity by doctors. Nevertheless, once Gleevec goes generic, I expect most insurers to require Gleevec be tried first in some sort of step-therapy approach.

The point here is that Gleevec performs remarkably well in general - the other drugs' improvements over Gleevec are really very much second-order effects.

That said, pona will do very well indeed if it becomes the 2nd-line drug of choice and the 1st-line drug for Sokal high-risk patients.

Note Gleevec actually has some Orange book formulation patents that go beyond 2015 - I think they go to 2019. Remains to be seen if they hold up or not - perhaps they get a settlement that delays generics until something like 2016/2017. So that's enough time for pona to get a decent foothold first.

Peter