New Exciting Merger Is Opening Up Care Options For Those With Cystic Fibrosis
By Liisa Vexler
An exciting development for those suffering from cystic fibrosis (CF) has surfaced for the treatment of Pseudomonas aeruginosa lung infection. CURx Pharmaceuticals, a US-based company, has entered into an agreement with Gilead Sciences to develop Fosfomycin: Tobramycin for Inhalation (FTI). The best way to administer drugs to those with limited lung capability, it is the first step to crucial changes in the way infections are treated. The combination is set for Phase III clinical trial development after successfully completing Phase II with cystic fibrosis patients.
Developed in liquid form, it is administered via aerosol. Proven as an appropriate mode of transmission, it proved effective in patients with Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection, improving their overall lung functioning in clinical trials. Working specifically by producing an antibiotic pathogenic bacterium, preclinical studies showed that it was also resistant to methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).
A huge advance in the complexity of treating cystic fibrosis, the medical community is highly anticipating its use. With the demonstrated safety and efficacy that it affords, it has the potential to save lives. There are also high expectations that its use can eventually be extrapolated to other bacterial infections which plague those with CF.
The acquisition of the company allows for research into other inhaled therapeutic expenditures for those with CF who remain a difficult population to treat. CF patients continue to be a challenge for their limitation in modes of therapeutic transmission that work successfully across patients. The merger promises to provide the CF community with more options to target lung specific bacterial infections which are at the cornerstone of the disease’s complexities.