Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: VRTX) has climbed nearly 20% so far this year. And that leaves the stock trading a few dollars off its record high. It's not surprising Vertex has advanced. The company is about to erase investors' one big concern about its future: its dependence on one treatment area.

The company is known for its billion-dollar cystic fibrosis (CF) portfolio. But its next big product may be a treatment for blood disorders. Regulators are reviewing the candidate -- called exa-cel -- right now. And Vertex is advancing with other potential products too -- in the area of CF and beyond. Considering all of this, is Vertex a buy even at today's level? Let's find out.

First, a bit of background. Vertex is the global leader in CF treatments. The company makes a line of therapeutics called CFTR modulators that correct the functioning of CF patients' faulty CFTR protein. This faulty protein is responsible for the devastating symptoms of the disease.

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Source Fool.com