Two drug-manufacturing firms this week launched a collaboration to develop the first single-dose daily combination antiretroviral drug to treat HIV-positive people.
The combination pill, to be manufactured by Gilead and Bristol-Myers Squibb, could be approved and marketed by late 2006, the Kaisernetwork news service reported.
The combined medication will include Bristol-Myers Squibb's Sustiva and Gilead's Viread and Emtriva. The current wholesale price of the three drugs sold separately is about US $35 a day. According to the Kaisernetwork, a single-dose pill would make it "much easier" for HIV/AIDS patients to adhere to their treatment regimen.
Currently, antiretroviral treatment requires patients to take several pills a day, sometimes at specific times and under certain conditions, which can make it difficult for them to comply with the requirements.
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