Amylin Posts Third-Quarter Loss As Byetta Sales Decline

San Diego, CAAs sales of the diabetes drug Byetta continued to slip, Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc. recently reported a larger third-quarter loss than last year, Bloomberg Businessweek reports.

span itemprop="image" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/ImageObject" style="display:block">Amylin and Eli Lilly & Co. are partners on Byetta, and sales of the drug have been low since 2008, when it was linked to cases of acute pancreatitis, according to the news provider.

The companies are reportedly seeking marketing approval for a new diabetes drug called Bydureon, which would be injected once a week rather than Byetta's twice-daily injections, the news source said.

In October, the Food and Drug Administration said it was not ready to approve Bydureon and asked for more data, which the companies intend to provide by the end of 2011. The companies expect the FDA to review that data for six months after it is submitted.

Amylin reported that it lost $50.7 million in the quarter, compared with a loss of $26.7 million in the same quarter last year. Byetta sales decreased by 23 percent in the third quarter, according to the news provider.