Positive Ph III results for Novo Nordisk's FIX derivative for hemophilia B

Danish insulin giant Novo Nordisk (NOV: N) says it has completed paradigm 2, the first Phase III trial with a long-acting FIX derivative, N9-GP (glycopegylated recombinant factor IX), for hemophilia B patients, with successful results. Paradigm 2 is a multicenter, blinded trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of N9-GP when used for on-demand or prophylactic treatment in patients with haemophilia B.

In the trial, 74 patients were treated for six months on-demand, or 12 months by a prophylactic regimen of 40 U/kg or 10 U/kg N9-GP once weekly. The median bleeding rate for patients treated on-demand was 15.6 episodes per year. Patients on prophylaxis had a median annualised bleeding rate of 1.0 and 2.9 episodes per year, when treated with weekly doses of 40 U/kg and 10 U/kg, respectively.

Among patients randomized to receive 40 U/kg N9-GP, 99% of bleeding episodes were treated with only one infusion, and two-thirds of the patients experienced complete resolution of bleeding in their target joints. Patients in this dose group also reported an improvement in quality of life during the trial. Pharmacokinetic data documented a steady state half-life of 110 hours.