Sales of Visudyne eye treatment continue fall, down 40.4 per cent First - quarter sales of QLT Inc.'s (TSX:QLT) Visudyne eye drug continued to fall as expected, due to competition from other drugs, the company said Monday.

Sales of Visudyne, used in photodynamic treatment (PDT) of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), were US$36.5 million, down 40.4 per cent compared with sales in the year-ago period.

"The drop in Visudyne sales was primarily due to the approval and reimbursement in Europe of alternative therapeutics for age-related macular degeneration," QLT, manufacturer of the drug, said in a release.

QLT has been under pressure ever since Visudyne sales started to fall with the approval of rival Genentech's Lucentis for use in the U.S. to treat macular degeneration and rising off-label use of cancer treatment Avastin to treat AMD.

Earlier this year, QLT said it has decided to sell its U.S. business including its prostate cancer treatment Eligard and the land and building in Vancouver where its head office is located, and announced it will cut 115 jobs.



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