Replies to post #176161 on Biotech Values

[justrpaul]

Context and perspective –

We have a population of 4 to 6 million chronic HCV patients in the USA. Sovaldi has been on the market for not yet four months and some 60,000 +/- patients have been treated with it. I don’t believe you can really say with any confidence that out of that total population, 60,000 or 100,000 or more weren’t in need of somewhat rapid treatment.

As for the issue that interferon is not a big deal, I can only assume you have never had the pleasure of injecting yourself with it over 12, 24, or 48 weeks, and enjoying the numerous side-effects.

[DewDiligence]

GILD—It can't be that all these patients who got on Sovaldi+IFN were desperate to get treated in these six to nine months.

It’s been only 112 days since FDA approval of Sovaldi (#msg-99677002), which is too soon (IMO) to be making a broad statement that IFN is less of an impediment to treatment than previously thought.