Corifollitropin alfa

Corifollitropin alfa, also known as Elonva is used in women undergoing fertility treatment to stimulate the development of more than one mature egg (oocyte) at a time in the ovaries. This drug used together with a gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) antagonist, a type of medicine also used in fertility treatments. Elonva is available only by prescription .

In July 2014, Merck announced the receipt of a Complete Response Letter (CRL) from the U.S. FDA for its New Drug Application for this drug. Corifollitropin alfa is marketed as Elonva in more than 75 countries .

Corifollitropin alfa is produced by a method known as ‘recombinant DNA technology’. This means that it is made by cells into which a DNA has been introduced that makes them able to produce corifollitropin alfa .

Multiple studies and a meta-analysis suggest that corifollitropin alfa is as efficacious as recombinant FSH in terms of live birth rate, ongoing pregnancy rate, as well as clinical pregnancy rate. The increased in the number of eggs retrieved under corifollitropin alfa regimen represents the elevated effectiveness of this drug, however, warns at the same time against the possibility of an increased risk of ovarian hyperstimulation in the high responder study group of women , .