The Pridgen Revolution? Dr. Pridgen on Bringing His Antiviral Approach to Fibromyalgia To Market
The Pridgen Revolution?
Almost three years ago, Dr. Pridgen threatened to turn the world of fibromyalgia treatment on its head. Few had connected fibromyalgia with viruses or even immune problems when Pridgen announced that a) FM is caused herpes simplex virus reactivation and b) that it could be treated with antivirals. Then he shocked a chronic fatigue syndrome community (ME/CFS) well acquainted with antivirals with his assertion that one antiviral drug was not enough. (Pridgen believes the same process is going on in ME/CFS). Pridgen wasn’t done, though, instead of using the usual anti-herpes virus drugs he used an anti-inflammatory (Celebrex) that had antiviral properties as his second antiviral.
Pridgen was knocking down received wisdom at every turn. One would not have been remiss to think that he and his unusual protocol would, as other supposed cures have, disappear at some point, but he hasn’t.Instead, touting his success with the drug combo, Pridgen embarked on the long and difficult task of bringing a new treatment to market. After joining up with a University of Alabama virologist, Dr. Carol Duffy, Pridgen formed a biotech company aptly named Innovative Med Concepts, hired an ex-Pfizer vice-president, put together a strong scientific board, raised the money for a Phase 2 trial, and embarked on toxicology testing.The Phase II trial was successful enough for the drug combo to move forward. Then Innovate Med Concept got a break when FDA granted fast-track status to its IMC-1 formulation, allowing the drug combo to move forward as quickly as possible. (Fast-track status is granted to serious diseases that have “substantial impact on day-to-day functioning.")Now comes the real work – raising money for some very, very expensive Phase 3 trials. It’s been about a year since we checked in. In an interview, I asked Pridgen how it was going.
The Pridgen Interview
The Phase II trial results were certainly quite good, but they weren't spectacular. How did the Phase II trial inform the Phase III trial and how will it be different?We wanted to prove the concept first with a dose that we knew would be effective. Additionally, we chose this lower dose, as it would allow us to begin without first performing the very expensive and time-consuming toxicology studies. We will be beginning the final 2 toxicology studies necessary to be Phase 3 ready, this month, and we expect to have these completed late this winter or in early spring 2017.This was a year to prep for the big Phase III trials. How much money do you need to raise? Do you need to do one or two trials and how big does the trial or trials need to be? How much money do you need to raise?Typically, two Phase 3 studies are required, the studies require 500-1000 patients per study, and these studies cost $25-50 million each.One report suggested that some pharmaceutical companies have shown interest. Can you say anything about that?
We have met with a dozen different pharmaceutical companies. All knew that we would be either forming a strategic partnership, or continuing the drug development ourselves once we near Phase 3 readiness. We will meet with these pharmaceutical companies to discuss a possible partnership at the upcoming JP Morgan meeting Jan 2017 in San Francisco.We've seen a couple of high-profile Phase III trial failures recently. One may have been due to doctors misidentifying a side effect as something else and using a drug that interfered with the results. Another got excellent results in the Phase II trial but then didn't meet its primary endpoint (but did meet some of its secondary endpoints) in the Phase III trial. In another trial a very high placebo rate surfaced. What can you do to ensure that IMC-1 trial goes as well as possible?We have actually been using a variant of this combination at my office for 2-3 years, so we are extremely confident in, not only its efficacy, but also know the combination is quite well tolerated and safe. Though providing the necessary optimal dose is incredibly time-consuming for the office staff, and complicated for the patients, we endure this hardship because of the dramatic improvement they experience.Dr. Pridgen remains very, (very) confident in the effects of his protocol; he’s so confident that he anticipates raising the bar for the primary endpoint of his Phase 3 trials. Drugs have failed because they chose the wrong primary endpoint or too difficult of a primary endpoint, but Pridgen reports the study will use the most difficult primary endpoint to attain of any fibromyalgia trial to date:Finally, because IMC-1 is so effective, we will use a primary endpoint that represents the highest bar ever used for any of the drugs previously studied for FM. We feel that this will negate to some degree the placebo effect.We can see from studies and patient comments that the fibromyalgia population is pretty heterogeneous one. Some people do well on Lyrica - others do terribly. Low dose naltrexone works very well for some and others do poorly on it, etc., etc. The heterogeneity seen in the reactions to pain medications, in general, is pretty daunting. Is there any way you can target FM patients who are more likely to do well on the drug?Again, Pridgen waxed confident in how efficacious this drug combination is. He believes his is the only protocol that gets at the source of fibromyalgia.We believe IMC-1 is targeting the possible cause of fibromyalgia, not just modifying the body’s perception of pain.Emedicine lists four antivirals (Famvir, Valtrex, Acyclovir, Penciclovir) used to treat herpes simplex infections. You've found that you need to add Celebrex to Famvir to get the best results in FM. Why do you think this is?Penciclovir is not available in the PO form because it is not well absorbed, so it is a better topical agent. Actually, Famvir turns into the active form, penciclovir, once it is acted on by human and viral enzymes. Celebrex is effective as an antiviral also. Herpes viruses are known to up-regulate the Cox-1 and Cox-2 enzymes to maximize viral activation. Though Celebrex (celecoxib) is known as a Cox-2 inhibitor, it actually has substantial Cox-1 inhibition.
Are the herpes simplex infections harder in FM harder to get at than in other diseases? Do you need to reach into the central nervous system?Essentially all adults have HSV-1, but we believe there is an immune defect in place in some patients, which results in an inability to force the virus into dormancy after an acute infection. In other words, patients with FM, have an ongoing HSV-1 infection, which we feel results in a chronic stress response. The meds can act centrally, however, the virus lives in the Trigeminal, and Nodose ganglia which are intracranial, but technically not in the CNS. The dorsal sacral root ganglia are the third major site (in the pelvis) where the virus resides.
- For more on Herpex Simplex Viruses: Herpes Simplex - A Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Inquiry
Note: The herpes virus is known to hide out all three of these ganglia or cell bodies.
- Trigeminal ganglia – is the largest and most complex of the 12 cranial nerves. The trigeminal ganglia provides sensations to the face and other parts of the head. It also sends signals that allow us to chew and even helps with balance. People with trigeminal neuralgia can experience high levels of pain when doing things like brushing their teeth or putting on makeup.
- Nodose ganglia – are sensory ganglia or nerve cell bodies of the vagus nerve that are found near the top of the spine..
- Dorsal sacral root ganglia – are associated with vertebrae in the pelvic area. The nerves emanating from them impact all areas of gut and pelvic functioning. In between bouts of genital herpes virus reactivation, the herpes simplex virus hides in these ganglia.
Like the other herpesviruses, almost everyone is infected with HSV-1, and when reactivated these infections can be pretty harmful. They've been shown to cause gastrointestinal and esophageal disorders, acute viral encephalitis, and approximately 25% of all genital herpes infections. Fibromyalgia is a bit different; it causes widespread pain, fatigue, sleep and sometimes mood problems as well as other symptoms- and is thought more of as a central nervous system disorder than anything else. Can you explain what the herpes simplex virus is doing differently in FM to cause this extraordinary range of symptoms?The ongoing stress response affects nearly every system in the body. The immune response to this stress response over time affects sleep, mood, anxiety, thyroid, adrenal function, GI tract, HA’s and much more.Dr. Duffy was reportedly writing up a paper on her gut findings. Can you tell us that the status of that is?We have one last sample (of 60 total) to obtain to complete the study.(At a conference Duffy was reported to find HSV-1 in 100% of FM gut biopsies and a protein found only in cells that are actively infected with HSV-1 in 80% of patients.)With another year under your belt have you learned anything new treating FM using Famvir and Celebrex?We have found that anything that was previously part of the functional somatic syndrome will improve on this treatment. At the risk of sounding like a snake oil salesman, we have patients who have chronic non-seasonal sinusitis, HA’s, brain fog, and even libido issues who swear by IMC-1.Dosing - I also asked Dr. Pridgen about dosing information. He replied that the dosing information has to be proprietary right now. This is because pharmaceutical companies or other funding sources would not back a product composed of already approved drugs if the dosages were put in the public realm. Given the enormous costs of the Phase 3 trials, Pridgen’s drug combo would never make it to market without their backing.That means FM patients will have to wait before Dr. Pridgen publicly reports on the appropriate dose. For many people this conversation is moot - their doctors would not prescribe antivirals now anyway. People seeing Dr. Pridgen or people seeing doctors in touch with Dr. Pridgen will obviously get the right doses.If the trials are successful and the FDA approves the IMC-1 formulation everyone should be able to get a shot at these drugs.Can you give us a timeline regarding the Phase III trial(s)?They will start next year.____________________________For more on Dr. Pridgen's antiviral approach to fibromyalgia: