WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--A Food and Drug Administration panel unanimously backed the approval of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s (VRTX) proposed hepatitis C-drug telaprevir, saying it showed strong effectiveness, a day after also endorsing a similar product from Merck & Co. (MRK).
The panel of non-FDA medical experts voted 18-to-0 on a question that asked whether the available data support approval of the telaprevir in combination with other hepatitis C drugs, pegylated interferon and ribavirin. The vote amounts to a recommendation that the agency approve telaprevir. The FDA usually follows the advice of its advisory panels but isn't required to.