AbbVie sales and marketing update

AbbVie launched Humira adalimumab in the U.K. to treat patients aged 6-17 years with severely active Crohn's disease who failed, are intolerant to or have contraindications to conventional therapy. The European Commission approved expanding the label of Humira for the indication late last year. AbbVie could not be reached for details (see BioCentury, Dec. 3, 2012).

The human mAb against tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alpha is already approved in the EU and U.S. to treat adults with moderately to severely active Crohn's disease. Humira is also approved in the U.S. and EU to treat adults with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis (RA), ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis and chronic plaque psoriasis and to treat polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis in patients four years of age or older. Eisai Co. Ltd. (Tokyo:4523; Osaka:4523, Tokyo, Japan) and Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT, Abbott Park, Ill.) jointly developed Humira in Japan and co-promote it in Japan, Korea and Taiwan. AbbVie has rights to the product elsewhere. ...