Vertex release updates on Phase 3 VX-661 program

Vertex Pharmaceuticals has released an update on the development of its upcoming Phase 3 program involving its investigational compound VX-661.
The program will include four different trials that are expected to enroll a combined 1,000 individuals who have cystic fibrosis (CF).
"While we recognize that people with CF with minimal function mutations have a form of the disease that is particularly difficult to treat, we believed it was important to evaluate whether a dual combination of VX-661 and ivacaftor could provide some benefit to these patients given they do not today have a medicine to treat the cause of their disease," Vertex Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer Dr. Jeffrey Chodakewitz said. 
The Phase 3 program will be comprised of four Phase 3 clinical trials involving various groups of people with CF that have the F508del mutation.
"These results suggest that a triple combination regimen may provide this group of people with CF the best chance at obtaining a meaningful benefit and we look forward to beginning the first study of a next-generation corrector together with VX-661 and ivacaftor in this group of patients later this year, pending data from our ongoing Phase 1 studies in healthy volunteers," Chodakewitz said.