RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK – Shares in Triangle pharmaceutical firm BioCryst surged 14% Friday morning after the company disclosed FDA approval of its drug to treat a rare swelling disorder.
Called hereditary angioedema, or HAE, it affects 1 in 50,000 people.
BioCryst (Nasdaq: BCRX) won approval for the drug Orladeyo, which is for use in adults and pediatric patients 12 and older. It is delivered once a day orally. Shares jumped more than 90 cents to nearly $6.
“Orladeyo offers people with HAE and their physicians the first orally administered non-steroidal option for preventing HAE attacks and represents an important and welcome step in making more treatment options available to physicians and patients,” said Anthony J. Castaldo, president and chief executive officer of the US Hereditary Angioedema Association (HAEA).
Hereditary angioedema is a disorder characterized by recurrent episodes of severe swelling (angioedema).
“The most common areas of the body to develop swelling are the limbs, face, intestinal tract, and airway. Minor trauma or stress may trigger an attack, but swelling often occurs without a known trigger. Episodes involving the intestinal tract cause severe abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting. Swelling in the airway can restrict breathing and lead to life-threatening obstruction of the airway. About one-third of people with this condition develop a non-itchy rash called erythema marginatum during an attack,” according to the US Library of Medicine.
