AEGiS-GMHC: DRUG WATCH: Burroughs Wellcome Plans To Improve AZT, Acyclovir

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1993. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

DRUG WATCH: Burroughs Wellcome Plans To Improve AZT, Acyclovir

Gay Men's Health Crisis: Treatment Issues, Volume 7 no. 5 - May, 1993
David Gold

At a recent investment analyst meeting in New York, Burroughs Wellcome shot-caller David Barry disclosed company plans to seek FDA approval for its acyclovir prodrug, valaciclovir (also known as BW 256) in 1994. BW256 is more readily absorbed than acyclovir and need only be taken two to three times per day (compared with five times per day for acyclovir). Burroughs is in a race against time to replace acyclovir before its exclusive US marketing rights to the drug expire in 1997. Acyclovir is the company's biggest money- earner, bringing in twice as much as AZT. Acyclovir earned $838 million for Burroughs in 1991. Burroughs is also reportedly working on a new anti-HIV nucleoside analogue. Are we the only ones who wonder why this company, which has made hundreds of millions of dollars from PWAs, fails to invest into other, more promising classes of anti-HIV therapies, such as protease inhibitors, tat, and non-nucleoside RT inhibitors?

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