Developing therapies for infectious diseases has been a hallmark for Valeant for over 30 years beginning
with our initial discovery of ribavirin in the 1970s. Ribavirin use has grown to be the standard of care for
the treatment of hepatitis C in combination with pegylated interferon, and has led to therapies that offer
the potential to treat multiple diseases.
Chronic Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C is a highly infectious and potentially fatal disease that can be contracted through blood and
bodily fluid contact, and is one of the most prevalent chronic infectious diseases in the United States. The
hepatitis C virus (HCV) attacks the liver and can cause inflammation, scarring, failure and cancer in that
organ.
Treatment for chronic hepatitis C represents a significant unmet medical need. The World Health Organization
(WHO) estimates as many as 170 million people worldwide are infected by HCV. Of these, the Center for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has estimated that approximately 10 million people are infected with
HCV in the United States, Europe and Japan, of which 3.9 million are in the United States and 2 million are
in Japan. HCV is the leading cause of liver transplantation in the United States, accounts for 30 percent of
end-stage liver disease and liver cancer, and is responsible for approximately 12,000 HCV-related deaths in
the United States per year. Currently, there is no approved vaccine to prevent hepatitis C.
Valeant is currently conducting a Phase 2b clinical trial
for taribavirin, a pro-drug of ribavirin (RBV)
that is under development for treating hepatitis C in combination with a pegylated interferon.
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