Branded

PHILADELPHIA — The specialty pharmacy market is set to reach $90 billion this year, so it’s clear that managed care organizations have a lot at stake.

That was the overarching theme at a symposium organized by specialty pharmacy provider ACRO Pharmaceutical Services, in conjunction with Armada Health Care, last Thursday at the Hyatt Regency at Penn’s Landing in Philadelphia.

ORLANDO, Fla. — A drug made by Amgen maintained blood platelet counts in patients with an autoimmune bleeding disorder, according to results of a five-year study released Sunday.

MORRISTOWN, N.J. — An investigational drug made by Watson Pharmaceuticals and Columbia Labs reduced the risk of premature birth, according to results of a late-stage clinical trial.

The two companies announced results Monday of a phase-3 trial of Prochieve (progesterone), a vaginal gel, saying that it produced a significant reduction in the number of preterm births. The trial was conducted under a collaboration with the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, part of the National Institutes of Health.

BETHESDA, Md. — Good results from an investigational diabetes drug made by Spherix may result from higher body mass indexes among U.S. patients, according to results of a late-stage clinical trial announced Thursday.

Spherix said results of the phase-3 trial conducted among American and Indian patients indicated that D-tagatose may be more effective in lowering HbA1c levels due to Americans having higher BMIs on average than Indians.

JERUSALEM — Oramed Pharmaceuticals, a developer of oral drug delivery solutions, has published an article in the Journal of Diabetes Science and Technology’s November issue describing evaluation of the company’s glucagon-like peptide (GLP-1) analog formulation (ORMD-0901) in regulating glucose excursions in animal models.

WHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J., and BEVERLY, Mass. (Dec. 2) Merck announced on Thursday it has inked a deal to acquire an insulin maker.

CHADDS FORD, Pa. — Endo Pharmaceuticals has finished its acquisition of Qualitest Pharmaceuticals for $1.2 billion, Endo said Wednesday.

Endo had agreed to buy Qualitest, a privately owned manufacturer of generic drugs, on Dec. 28.

NEW YORK — Drug maker Keryx Biopharmaceuticals got promising results from a late-stage clinical trial of a drug for treating elevated phosphate levels, also known as hyperphosphatemia, in patients on kidney dialysis, the company said Tuesday.

In a phase-3 trial, Zerenex (ferric citrate) significantly reduced phosphate levels in patients with end-stage kidney disease on dialysis.