Vivus endocrine/metabolic news
Vivus will for the second time this year reduce sales representatives for obesity drug Qsymia phentermine/topiramate, this time to 50 from 100. During 1Q15, the company cut the Qsymia sales force down to 100 from 150. Vivus reported $14 million in 2Q15 sales of the low-dose combination of phentermine and topiramate, up from $11 million in 2Q14. During a conference call to discuss its 2Q15 results, Vivus said that the market for obesity drugs “has developed at a substantially lower rate than expected,” as generic phentermine still accounts for more than 80% of prescription volume (see BioCentury, April 6).
Vivus also said it has met with FDA to discuss redesigning its AQCLAIM cardiovascular outcomes trial (CVOT) of Qsymia to cut costs. The company said it is gathering experts to discuss “alternative proposals that will satisfy the existing requirements,” but declined to say when it may present FDA with a new protocol. ...