Vertex Unveils More Upbeat Hep C Drug Data

An experimental hepatitis C drug from Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX Quote) can knock back the virus even in the most difficult-to-treat patients, according to results from a clinical trial announced Monday.

The news sent Vertex shares up 63 cents, or 2%, to $32.87 in recent trading Monday morning.

The Vertex drug, telaprevir, was able to reduce levels of the hepatitis C virus down to undetectable levels in 52% of so called non-responder or relapse patients. These are patients considered the hardest to treat because they either did not respond to current drugs like interferon and ribavirin, or their virus returned after treatment. ...