Amylin looks to increase Symlin, Byetta users by at least 2.7 million

By Jennifer Lanning Drey

Eugene, Ore., May 18 - Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is hopeful that label extensions and clinical work will increase the number of Symlin (pramlintide acetate) and Byetta (exenatide) users by 2.7 million people in the near term, said Daniel Bradbury, chief operating officer for Amylin, in a speech at the Bank of America 2006 Health Care Conference on Thursday.

Symlin was launched in April 2005 and Byetta in June of the same year, and each has continued to grow revenues for the company into the first quarter of 2006, said Bradbury.

Amylin is currently on track to file a supplemental New Drug Application with the Food and Drug Administration for a disposable delivery of Symlin in the middle of the year, a product that the company believes will be more convenient for users to incorporate into their various lifestyles, said Bradbury.

"We continue to invest in this product," he said, during the conference.

"We're investing further in the product by recruiting some additional specialty representatives and indeed we've expanded now the target base that we're aiming for the product to 16,000 physicians."

In the first quarter of the year, Amylin also filed a supplemental NDA with the FDA seeking approval for expanded use of Byetta as an add-on therapy to a common class of oral diabetes medication called thiazolidinediones in people with type 2 diabetes who are not achieving acceptable blood sugar control, according to a company press release.

Byetta, in terms of new prescriptions, is now the fifth-most prescribed brand for type 2 diabetes, said Bradbury.

Amylin is also working to develop a long-acting release version of Byetta that would reduce dosing from twice daily to once weekly. If successful, Amylin expects Byetta's usage to increase beyond the near-term projection of 2.7 million people.

Amylin is a biopharmaceutical company based in San Diego.

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