Wyeth reveals positive Relistor results

Wyeth Pharmaceuticals and Progenics Pharmaceuticals have announced results from a phase III study involving Relistor (methylnaltrexone bromide).

It focused on possibly providing a new indication for the drug, which is a peripherally-acting mu-opioid receptor antagonist.

A one-month double-blind stage of the trial showed that subcutaneous injection of Relistor for the treatment of opioid-induced constipation was more successful at causing rescue-free bowel movement within four hours than a placebo.

Some 460 patients were included in the research, all of whom had chronic-non-cancer pain. A total of 34.2 per cent on Relistor experienced laxation and 9.9 per cent did so with the placebo.

Dr Richard Blonsky, director of the Pain and Rehabilitation Clinic of Chicago, US and clinical professor of Neurology at Northwestern University?s Feinberg School of Medicine, said opioids are often used to treat chronic non-cancer pain but their use can be complicated by constipation.

“The results from this double-blind study indicate that subcutaneous Relistor may be a promising treatment option for this patient population,” he explained.

Other brands under the Wyeth umbrella include ChapStick and Caltrate.