CHMP adopts positive opinion to extend the use of Veklury® (remdesivir) to treat COVID-19 in people with hepatic impairment

FOSTER CITY, Calif., September 19, 2023 — Gilead Sciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: GILD) today announced that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) granted a positive opinion for the use of Veklury^® (remdesivir) to treat people with COVID-19 with mild to severe hepatic impairment. The European Commission (EC) will review the CHMP recommendation and, if adopted, Veklury will become the first and only authorized antiviral COVID-19 treatment that can be used across all stages of liver disease.

Europe has the highest burden of liver disease in the world and cases are expected to grow across many countries. Furthermore, people with liver disease represent a population that is highly vulnerable to COVID-19 and are at increased risk of morbidity and mortality. Safety data in people with severe hepatic impairment are limited and there are few treatment options that are safe and effective.

“Despite lower levels of COVID-19 circulating in the European Union (EU) than at the height of the pandemic, the disease continues to persist and pose a real risk to vulnerable individuals, including those with hepatic impairment,” said Anu Osinusi, Vice President, Clinical Research for Hepatitis, Respiratory and Emerging Viruses, Gilead Sciences. “Today’s positive CHMP opinion reflects Gilead’s ongoing commitment to addressing the unmet needs of those most susceptible to COVID-19.”

The clinical benefit of Veklury in hospitalized populations with COVID-19 is supported by randomized controlled trials, real-world evidence and meta-analyses, but the pharmacokinetics of Veklury had not previously been evaluated in patients with hepatic impairment. This positive opinion was based on results from a Phase 1 study of safety and pharmacokinetics in people with hepatic impairment (GS-US-540-9014). Based upon these results, the revised recommendation requires no dose adjustment or liver function testing before or during treatment with Veklury.

“The positive opinion from the Committee helps validate the safety profile of Veklury and is reassuring news to vulnerable populations, such as those living with liver disease that may be facing an increased risk of complications from COVID-19,” said Antonella Castagna, MD, Head of Infectious Diseases at San Raffaele Scientific Institute; Professor, Clinic of Infectious Diseases, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University. “Expanding the use of Veklury to those with hepatic impairment will help more people gain access to treatment for COVID-19.”

This positive opinion follows recent approvals in the U.S. and the EU which extended the approval of Veklury to treat COVID-19 in people with renal and hepatic impairment.

About GS-US-540-9014

Gilead conducted a Phase 1, multicenter, open-label, single-dose study to evaluate the pharmacokinetics (PK) of Veklury and its metabolites in participants with normal hepatic function and moderate or severe hepatic impairment. Participants with varying degrees of hepatic impairment and normal hepatic function were enrolled as follows: Cohort 1: 20 participants (10 moderate hepatic impairment and 10 matched normal hepatic function control participants, for a target of 8 evaluable per group), Cohort 2: 12 participants (6 severe hepatic impairment and 6 matched normal hepatic function control participants).

About Gilead’s COVID-19 Development Program

Veklury (remdesivir) is a nucleotide analog prodrug invented by Gilead, building on more than a decade of the company’s antiviral research. Veklury is the antiviral standard of care for the treatment of hospitalized patients with COVID-19 and is a recommended treatment for reducing disease progression in non-hospitalized patients at high risk of disease progression. Veklury has an established safety profile and minimal known drug interactions in diverse populations. It plays an important role in reducing disease progression and mortality across a spectrum of disease severity and enabling patients to recover faster.

Veklury directly inhibits viral replication inside of the cell by targeting the SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA polymerase. Based on in vitro analyses, Veklury retains antiviral activity against recent Omicron subvariants of concern, including XBB, XBB.1.5 and CH.1.1. Veklury continues to be evaluated against emerging variants of interest and concern, including EG.5, EG.5.1 and BA.2.86.

Veklury is approved in more than 50 countries worldwide. To date, Veklury and generic remdesivir have been made available to more than 13 million patients around the world, including more than 8 million people in middle- and low-income countries through Gilead’s voluntary licensing program.

There remains a significant need to develop new and effective oral treatment options for people with COVID-19. Gilead is also working to advance an investigational oral antiviral, obeldesivir, for the treatment of COVID-19. Obeldesivir is a direct-acting nucleoside inhibitor of the of the SARS-CoV-2 RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp), a critical component that the virus uses to replicate.

Read the full press release here.