GlaxoSmithKline plc (ADR) (NYSE:GSK), a healthcare company, is seeking approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for a shingles vaccine.
The new shingles vaccine being submitted by GlaxoSmithKline is called Shingrix. The hope of GSK is that the vaccine can be used in patients 50 and older to prevent shingles and the postherpetic neuralgia chronic pain that comes with it.
GlaxoSmithKline’s Shingrix is a non-live vaccine that had positive results during its Phase III clinical trials. If it gets the FDA’s approval, it can be administered to patients via intramuscular injection.
GlaxoSmithKline’s submission to the FDA is for its Shingrix to be given out in two doses. There would be a wait period of two to six months between the doses. There is a one in three chance that an adult in the United States will get shingles. This increase to one in two people after age 85.
Shingles is when the reactivation of latent chickenpox virus occurs. It normally results in a painful and itchy rash that appears on one side of the body. The chance of this happening increases after a person reaches 50 years in age due to the immune system becoming less powerful over time.
“Shingles is a common and potentially serious condition,” Dr. Emmanuel Hanon, Senior Vice President and Head of Vaccines R&D at GlaxoSmithKline, said in a statement. “Today’s file submission puts us a step closer to making this vaccine available to help protect more people from shingles and the complications associated with it.”
GSK stock was down slightly as of Noon Monday.
