Roche to Discontinue U.S. Sales of AIDS Drug

On Monday, Roche Holding AG announced it is stopping U.S. sales of Fortovase (saquinavir), as demand for the drug has diminished and the Swiss drug maker's Invirase (saquinavir mesylate) formulation has fewer side effects and requires a less demanding dosage schedule. Updated treatment guidelines from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services no longer list Fortovase as part of a preferred or alternative initial treatment regimen, added Roche. "The Fortovase formulation of saquinavir no longer meets the demands of convenience and tolerability expected by patients today," Frederick Schmid, the firm's vice president for virology/HIV, said in a statement. "We have determined that it is time to focus our resources on the availability of Invirase, which offers significant improvements in convenience and GI tolerance."

Back to other news for February 7, 2006

Search the Newsroom archive