Shire launches von Willebrand disease drug in the US

Shire announced the US launch of Vonvendi on Tuesday, which is the only recombinant treatment for adults living with von Willebrand disease (VWD) – a hereditary bleeding disorder.

Vonvendi was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in December 2015 and is indicated for on-demand treatment and control of bleeding episodes in adults with VWD.

As the first and only recombinant von Willebrand factor treatment, Vonvendi replaces the VWF the body is missing in VWD.

Shannon Rosetich, head of global hematology at Shire, said: ““Vonvendi marks a new era in treating von Willebrand disease to help give people with VWD control over their bleeds.

“We look forward to expanding availability to patients who can benefit from this treatment all over the world.”

Von Willebrand disease is caused by deficiency or dysfunction of von Willebrand factor, a plasma protein that mediates the initial adhesion of platelets at sites of vascular injury. It is estimated that one in 100 people, or around 3m people in the US suffer from VWD.

At 1242 BST, Shire shares were up 0.9% to 5,075p.