QLT Inc. (TSX:QLT; Nasdaq:QLTI) reported another drop in sales of Visudyne, its main drug to combat age-related macular degeneration.
Visudyne sales in QLT's second quarter, which ended June 30, 2007, fell 37.8% to US$59.3 million compared with US$95.3 million in the same period last year.
Second quarter U.S. sales fell 45.5% to US$10.3 million from US$18.9 million in the same period in 2006.
Visudyne sales have been eroded by increased competition on a number of fronts. Genentech's cancer treatment drug, Avastin, which is also used to treat AMD, has already had a significant impact on Visudyne sales, as has Macugen, which was developed by Eyetech Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Pfizer Inc.
QLT is scheduled to release its full second-quarter financial results July 26.
The company's share price range during the past week: between $7.42 and $7.60; 52-week high: $11.67; 52-week low: $6.92.