Shares of TaiMed Biologics Inc, which manufactures drugs to treat AIDS, soared 12.93 percent yesterday after its new TMB-355 drug for intravenous injection was granted orphan drug status in the US.
The company’s shares closed at NT$151.2 yesterday, outperforming the over-the-counter benchmark index, which ended up 0.56 percent.
The granting of orphan status could shorten the time it takes for TMB-355 to enter the US market, TaiMed financial controller Jack Chen said over the telephone yesterday.
“By getting orphan status, we are able to negotiate with the US Food and Drug Administration to see if we can waive the phase-three clinical trials for the drug, or conduct them on a smaller scale,” Chen said.
An orphan drug is one that satisfies an unfilled medical need for a specific group of people numbering less than 200,000, TaiMed said, adding that as a result, clinical trials for such drugs do not require as many patients as those for other pharmaceuticals.
https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/biz/archives/2014/10/23/2003602680