This Blockbuster Drug from AbbVie Is Closer to Another Major Indication

The European Medicine Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) recently adopted a positive opinion that recommended the approval of AbbVie's (NYSE: ABBV) Rinvoq for what would be its fifth indication in that market. This would be to treat patients with moderate-to-severe ulcerative colitis who had an inadequate response to conventional therapies or biologic agents.

A decision for Rinvoq as a treatment for moderate-to-severe ulcerative colitis patients from the European Commission is expected in the third quarter of this year. But what could that mean for the pharma stock AbbVie's sales? Let's check out the results from Rinvoq's phase 3 clinical trials and the European Union ulcerative colitis market to answer this question.

Ulcerative colitis is a form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that causes chronic inflammation and damage to the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. This differs from the other form of IBD called Crohn's disease in at least one major way: Ulcerative colitis is limited to the rectum and large intestine, whereas Crohn's disease can affect any part of the GI tract.

Source Fool.com