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January 26, 2021

Sales double for Biohaven migraine drug in 4Q

PHOTO | ANDREW VENDITTI Biohaven CEO Vlad Coric
By Natalie Missakian

Biohaven Pharmaceuticals didn’t let the coronavirus stop its aggressive plan to go to market with its new migraine drug, which won Food and Drug Administration approval last February and launched just as the pandemic hit the U.S. 

The effort appears to be bearing fruit. 

The New Haven biotech released preliminary fourth-quarter figures Monday showing sales of the drug, Nurtec ODT, nearly doubled compared to the previous quarter.

Biohaven said the orally dissolving migraine pill brought in $35 million from October to December 2020, a 98% increase over the $18 million in sales from quarter three.

Biohaven released the preliminary sales figures ahead of its official quarter four earnings report.

“The launch of Nurtec ODT continues to build strong momentum, despite continued headwinds from the pandemic,” Dr. Vlad Coric, CEO, said in a statement.  “We’re proud of our commercial and R&D team members who have been dedicated to delivering this important medication to patients despite the challenges of the past year.”

The medication is part of a new class of migraine drugs known as CGRP (calcitonin gene-related peptide) receptor antagonists. 

Biohaven said more than 24,000 prescribers wrote 337,000 prescriptions for Nurtec ODT in 2020. Biohaven said there were no material changes in channel inventory between the third and fourth quarters. 

Biohaven’s main competitor is Allergan, a subsidiary of pharma giant AbbVie, which beat the company to market with the first oral CGRP migraine drug. 

But Biohaven said Nurtec ODT is the only CGRP drug that dissolves orally in the mouth and its speedier and longer-lasting relief sets it apart from competitors. 

The company has hired celebrities Khloe Kardashian and Tori Spelling to pitch the drug, and is sponsoring NASCAR No. 51, which will debut in the Daytona 500 on February 14.

Contact Natalie Missakian at news@newhavenbiz.com

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