Janssen to Present New Simeprevir Data at The International Liver Congress™ 2014 of the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL)

CORK, Ireland, March 24, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- New data from the clinical development program for Janssen's protease inhibitor simeprevir in the treatment of genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) in adult patients with compensated liver disease will be presented at The International Liver Congress™ of the European Association for the study of the Liver (EASL). The International Liver Congress™ 2014 will take place from April 9-13 in London.

Janssen will present oral and poster presentations spanning the company's Phase 2 and Phase 3 development program for simeprevir in treatment combinations with and without ribavirin and interferon. The presentations include final data from the Phase 2 COSMOS study of simeprevir in combination with Gilead Sciences Inc.'s nucleotide inhibitor sofosbuvir, with and without ribavirin, which will be presented during oral sessions.

The data to be presented at the International Liver Congress™ 2014 include:

Late-Breaking Oral Presentation

• Simeprevir plus sofosbuvir with/without ribavirin in HCV genotype 1 prior null-responder/treatment-naive patients (COSMOS Study): primary endpoint (SVR12) results in patients with METAVIR F3-4 (Cohort 2)
  • Lead Author: Eric Lawitz; The Texas Liver Institute, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX

Oral Presentations

• Once-daily simeprevir (TMC435) plus sofosbuvir (GS-7977) with or without ribavirin in HCV genotype 1 prior null responders with METAVIR F0-2: COSMOS Study Cohort 1 subgroup analysis
  • Lead Author: Mark Sulkowski; Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD

Poster Presentations

• Simeprevir reduces time with peginterferon/ribavirin-induced symptoms and quality-of-life impairments: 72-week results from three Phase 3 studies
  • Lead Author: Jane Scott; Janssen
• Virology analyses of simeprevir in Phase 2b and 3 studies
  • Lead Author: Oliver Lenz; Janssen
• Deep sequencing analyses of minority baseline polymorphisms and persistence of emerging mutations in HCV genotype 1-infected patients treated with simeprevir
  • Lead Author: Bart Fevery; Janssen

Full session details and data presentation listings for The International Liver Congress™ 2014 can be found at http://www.ilc-congress.eu.

About simeprevir
Simeprevir is an NS3/4A protease inhibitor jointly developed by Janssen R&D Ireland and Medivir AB and indicated for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C infection in combination with pegylated interferon and ribavirin in HCV genotype 1 infected patients with compensated liver disease, including cirrhosis.

Janssen is responsible for the global clinical development of simeprevir and has exclusive, worldwide marketing rights, except in the Nordic countries. Medivir AB will retain marketing rights for simeprevir in these countries under the marketing authorization held by Janssen-Cilag International NV. Simeprevir was approved for the treatment of genotype 1 hepatitis C in September 2013 in Japan and in November 2013 in Canada and the U.S. A Marketing Authorisation Application was submitted to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in April 2013 by Janssen-Cilag International NV seeking approval of simeprevir for the treatment of genotype 1 or genotype 4 chronic hepatitis C and The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has adopted a positive opinion, recommending Marketing Authorisation in the European Union for the use of simeprevir in combination with other medicinal products for the treatment of chronic HCV. This application is under review by the EMA.

About Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C, a blood-borne infectious disease of the liver and a leading cause of chronic liver disease, is the focus of a rapidly evolving treatment landscape. Approximately 150 million people are infected with hepatitis C worldwide and 350,000 people per year die from the disease globally. When left untreated, hepatitis C can cause significant damage to the liver including cirrhosis. Additionally, hepatitis C may increase the risk of developing complications from cirrhosis, which may include liver failure.

About Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies
At Janssen, we are dedicated to addressing and solving some of the most important unmet medical needs of our time in oncology, immunology, neuroscience, infectious diseases and vaccines, and cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. Driven by our commitment to patients, we develop innovative products, services and healthcare solutions to help people throughout the world. Janssen R&D Ireland is part of the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson. Please visit http://www.janssenrnd.com for more information.

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