Avanafil: Vivos los de VIVUS...

By Rob Waters

Nov. 18 (Bloomberg) -- Vivus Inc., an unprofitable biotechnology company, said its experimental impotence drug helped men in a study achieve erections in 30 minutes.

Data showing the drug, Avanafil, acts quickly will help Vivus seek U.S. clearance to enter the $3.7 billion erection- drug market in 2011, said Chief Executive Officer Leland Wilson. Vivus, based in Mountain View, California, may market Avanafil in early 2012, Wilson said.

As many as 322 million men worldwide may have erectile dysfunction by 2025, according to an Oct. 19 report by the American College of Physicians. Avanafil will grab market share because it works faster than Pfizer Inc.’s market-leading Viagra and Eli Lilly & Co.’s Cialis, Wilson said.

“Patients want on-demand therapy because when the mood is right, the mood is right,” Wilson said in a telephone interview. “We’ve shown efficacy in 30 minutes, and no one else has done that.”