orphan drug

Definition of orphan drug

: a drug that is not developed or marketed because its extremely limited use makes it unprofitable

Examples of orphan drug in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The lawsuit has been closely watched because Catalyst raised thorny questions about regulatory standards and the vagaries of orphan drug designations, while also playing into the heated national debate over the rising cost of prescription medicines. — Ed Silverman, STAT, "Catalyst loses lawsuit accusing the FDA of unfairly approving a rival rare disease drug," 29 Sep. 2020 In 2017, Nanoscope received orphan drug designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its use of optogenetics. — Ashton Nichols, Dallas News, "Bedford biomedical firm receives $2 million to begin macular degeneration trials," 3 June 2020 The Food and Drug Administration announced late Monday that remdesivir would get the agency’s orphan drug designation, a program usually reserved for rare illnesses affecting less than a quarter of a million people in the U.S. — Cristin Flanagan, Bloomberg.com, "Gilead’s Experimental Covid-19 Drug Scores Potential Tax Break," 7 May 2020 On March 23, the drug received the orphan drug destination from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. — Alison Medley, Houston Chronicle, "Here are 15 positive updates amid grim reports regarding COVID-19," 26 Mar. 2020 Still, the Firdapse approval generated debate over the wisdom of conferring orphan drug status because Catalyst did not invent or develop the drug. — Ed Silverman, STAT, "A drug maker courted controversy when it shut out a family-run rival. Now some patients say the medicine isn’t working," 15 Nov. 2019 While that is a tremendous amount, orphan drugs for small patient populations typically carry very large price tags and physicians are optimistic that insurers will cover the drug. — The Washington Post, oregonlive, "Long-awaited cystic fibrosis drug could turn deadly disease into a manageable condition," 31 Oct. 2019 While that is a tremendous amount, orphan drugs for small patient populations typically carry very large price tags and physicians are optimistic that insurers will cover the drug. — Carolyn Y. Johnson, Anchorage Daily News, "Long-awaited cystic fibrosis drug could turn deadly disease into a manageable condition," 31 Oct. 2019 When the Food and Drug Administration approved Korlym in 2012, it was designated as an orphan drug, giving Corcept seven years of market exclusivity as well as other economic incentives. — Sarah Jane Tribble, Washington Post, "How A Drugmaker Turned The Abortion Pill Into A Rare-Disease Profit Machine," 10 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'orphan drug.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Orphan drug.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/orphan%20drug. Accessed 20 Jan. 2021.

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