Older adults are most at risk of shingles, a painful, often debilitating blistering rash that results from reactivation of the varicella zoster virus that causes chickenpox and remains latent in those who have had that disease.
Shingrix contains a component from Agenus, which is entitled to royalties on future sales.
Meanwhile, Britain’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) said on Monday that it had approved GSK’s gene therapy Strimvelis for treating ADA-SCID—better known as “bubble boy” disease—despite its steep price tag of 594,000 euros ($698,000).
Infants with the condition need to be kept in isolation to avoid infections and the cost to the state health service can run to millions of pounds, so a one-off genetic cure can prove cost-effective even at a very high price.