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[posting]40851748[/posting]Jan. 12, 2011, 11:28 p.m. EST MannKind CEO bets big on diabetes drug Mann has contributed over half of $1.5 billion used on AfrezzaExplore related topics Biotechnology Medical Products MannKind Corp Pfizer Inc Story Quotes Comments Screener (1) Share Yahoo! Buzz MySpace del.icio.us Fark StumbleUpon Newsvine |Recommend PrintEmail AlertBy John Letzing, MarketWatch SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — MannKind Corp. Chief Executive Alfred Mann has poured a considerable amount of his personal fortune into developing the company’s inhaled insulin treatment for diabetes, contributing well over half of the $1.5 billion invested in the drug so far. The insulin treatment, Afrezza, is expected to receive a decision on approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration later this month. New chapter for insulinDr. Alfred Mann, CEO of Mannkind Corp., has developed an inhaled form of insulin, which the FDA is expected to decide on later this month. The product, called Afrezza, would be a major breakthrough in diabetes care, as it would greatly reduce the need for needles. The FDA informed MannKind /quotes/comstock/15*!mnkd/quotes/nls/mnkd (MNKD 9.01, -0.03, -0.33%) late last month that it needed to delay for roughly four weeks its decision on the highly-anticipated treatment, which could provide an inhaled alternative to insulin injections for diabetes patients. Mann said he’s cautiously optimistic that Afrezza will be approved. “I have personally invested $925 million of the $1.5 billion that’s been invested in this product,” Mann said during an interview on Wednesday. Afrezza could be a blockbuster for MannKind, said Mann, who noted that the company has no other commercialized products. MannKind has in “the order of ten” other products in development, the CEO said, though “they’re years away.” While other companies have made ill-fated forays into inhaled insulin in the past, including Pfizer Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!pfe/quotes/nls/pfe (PFE 18.36, -0.01, -0.05%) , Mann said his firm’s treatment is distinguished by its ease of use and effectiveness. “The only thing Pfizer had was an inhalation which frankly was in a large, inconvenient mechanism that had to be done multiple times, was expensive, and didn’t produce results as good as what you get with injections,” Mann said. Mann said that delays from the FDA on drug approvals are not uncommon. During a presentation at the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco later on Wednesday, Mann told an audience that while MannKind has not received specific reasons from the FDA for its delay in deciding on Afrezza, he assumes that it’s attributable to a slowdown during the recent holiday season. “My guess is they just didn’t have it all done, given the holidays,” Mann said. “They’re being very, very thorough, as they should be.” Mann previously founded MiniMed Inc., a diabetes therapy developer sold for $3.7 billion to Medtronic Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!mdt/quotes/nls/mdt (MDT 36.70, +0.18, +0.49%) in 2001. Last year, Forbes listed Mann as one of the world’s wealthiest individuals, with an estimated net worth of $1.4 billion. John Letzing is a MarketWatch reporter based in San Francisco. |
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| aus der Diskussion: | Mannkind, Game-Chancer in Sachen Diabetik? |
| Autor (Datum des Eintrages): | Magnetfeldfredy (13.01.11 07:29:32) |
| Beitrag: | 7 von 6,825 (ID:40852299) |
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