GSK expects RSV vaccine uptake will be slower than shingles vaccine-CEO
London: GSK does not expect initial uptake of its RSV vaccine will be as swift as it was for its blockbuster shingles vaccine, though the company is confident in its new inoculation, Chief Executive Emma Walmsley said on Wednesday.
The company will launch the vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in the United States in the autumn.
The company has said it expects the inoculation to be a major driver of future sales to offset the loss of patent protection for some of its key HIV medicines later this decade.
“I think the uptake on this you need to watch for through the (respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV) season. It won’t be the same rate of build as Shingrix was. But we do think it is a really key pillar,” she said in a media briefing.
She said that doses of the vaccine had recently been shipped to distribution centres in the United States.
Earlier on Wednesday, GSK raised its 2023 financial guidance after reporting second-quarter earnings that beat estimates.
GSK’s vaccine against shingles, called Shingrix, is the company’s top-selling drug, generating 880 million pounds ($1.14 billion) in the second quarter.
RSV is a leading cause of pneumonia in toddlers and the elderly, causing thousands of hospitalisations and deaths each year.
GSK said in June that it expects to price its shot at between $200 and $295 a dose. Walmsley did not respond to a question on Wednesday seeking more details on the price for the U.S. launch. ($1 = 0.7752 pounds)
Source – ETHealth World
