The New England journal of medicine
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Factor VIII replacement products have improved the care of patients with hemophilia A, but the short half-life of these products affects the patients' quality of life. The half-life of recombinant factor VIII ranges from 15 to 19 hours because of the von Willebrand factor chaperone effect. BIVV001 (rFVIIIFc-VWF-XTEN) is a novel fusion protein designed to overcome this half-life ceiling and maintain high sustained factor VIII activity levels. Data are lacking on the safety and pharmacokinetics of single-dose BIVV001. ⋯ In a small, early-phase study involving men with severe hemophilia A, a single intravenous injection of BIVV001 resulted in high sustained factor VIII activity levels, with a half-life that was up to four times the half-life associated with recombinant factor VIII, an increase that could signal a new class of factor VIII replacement therapy with a weekly treatment interval. No safety concerns were reported during the 28-day period after administration. (Funded by Sanofi and Sobi; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT03205163.).