Pfizer Inc (PFE) issued a statement in response to today's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's or CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices or ACIP vote to recommend the use of Pfizer's Prevnar 13 (Pneumococcal 13-valent Conjugate Vaccine [Diphtheria CRM197 Protein]) for adults 19 years of age and older with immunocompromising conditions.
The ACIP defines immunocompromised as those people who have functional or anatomic asplenia, HIV infection, cancer, advanced kidney disease, or other immunocompromising conditions.
Pfizer said it believes that Prevnar 13 offers a significant health benefit and compelling value proposition for the U.S. health care system.
The company said it is committed to continuing discussions with the ACIP with the aim of expanding the recommendations to include all adults 50 years of age and older - a population rapidly increasing in the United States and at risk for developing vaccine-type pneumococcal pneumonia and invasive disease.
In December 2011, Prevnar 13 was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration under an accelerated approval pathway for adults 50 years of age and older for active immunization for the prevention of pneumococcal pneumonia and invasive disease caused by the 13 serotypes contained in the vaccine. Prevnar 13 is not FDA-approved for patients 6 through 49 years of age.
Prevnar 13 is available commercially for adults 50 years of age and older in the United States, as well as many other countries around the world. Prevnar 13 was first approved in the United States in February 2010 for the prevention of invasive pneumococcal disease caused by the 13 serotypes included in the vaccine in infants and young children from 6 weeks through 5 years of age.
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