Experimental herpes drug outperforms first-line med
People on new therapy had fewer outbreaks and were less infectious
By Nathan Seppa
WASHINGTON — An experimental treatment for genital herpes suppresses the viral infection better than the primary drug now used, a study shows. But whether the new compound will reach the market may depend on the resolution of a recent disconcerting finding of anemia in animals getting the drug candidate in separate tests.
About 17 percent of the population is infected with genital herpes, but more than two-thirds of those people don’t know it: Their symptoms fall short of the blisterlike lesions that strike some patients. Even without symptoms, carriers of the herpesvirus can spread it.