PTC Therapeutics on Thursday agreed to purchase Marathon Pharmaceuticals' Duchenne muscular dystrophy treatment for about $75 million in cash and $65 million in stock, reports Reuters.
Here are three things to know.
1. The Food and Drug Administration approved Emflaza in February as the second available treatment for the rare condition.
2. Controversy arose after Marathon announced Emfalza would cost $89,000 a year. The drug — generically known as deflazacort — can be imported from other countries for as little as $1,000 a year. Marathon delayed the launch of the drug following the price scrutiny.
3. PTC CEO Stuart Peltz promised to re-examine the current price of Emflaza. "We believe a change needs to be had, but ... it's really too premature to speculate on the price level," he said Thursday on a conference call, according to Reuters.
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