AMCP Corporate Member Spotlight: Spero Therapeutics

AMCP recently caught up with Todd Hood, senior director of national accounts at Spero Therapeutics, Inc., to learn about the company and gain insights on becoming an AMCP Corporate Member. 

As you considered becoming a Corporate Member, what tipped the scales? 

At Spero Therapeutics, our mission is to bring novel, life-improving therapies to patients suffering from multi-drug resistant (MDR) bacterial infections by developing highly differentiated and transformative antibiotics through cutting-edge science. We aim to help patients avoid unnecessary hospitalizations and get the care they need in an outpatient setting, with the goal of benefitting patients and the health care system. We believe our mission is intertwined with AMCP’s mission of improving patient health by ensuring access to high-quality, cost-effective medications and other therapies. It is our goal to bring hope to patients and families of loved ones suffering from serious infections. We know a relationship with AMCP provides opportunities to glean critical insights about the ever-changing managed care environment, which plays such a critical role in the patient journey. We also believe Spero Therapeutics’ relationship with AMCP will build strong collaborations with critical stakeholders, helping further our mutual goals for patients. 

What is your strategy and anticipated innovations for 2022? 

Spero Therapeutics’ experienced and dedicated employees are working tirelessly to advance our unique portfolio of novel investigational drug candidates designed to combat MDR bacterial infections and rare diseases through clinical development and regulatory approval. 

Our antibiotic pipeline is focused on areas for which the unmet medical need is greatest and the biological rationale for treatment is clear, and where there are few approved therapies or where the standard of care is suboptimal. 

Our pipeline of anti-infective agents is one of the most unique in the industry and consists of three investigational product candidates, including: 

• Our lead candidate, tebipenem HBr, is an oral tablet for treatment in adult patients with complicated urinary tract infections (cUTI), including acute pyelonephritis, caused by susceptible microorganisms. The FDA accepted and granted priority review designation for the New Drug Application (NDA) seeking approval for tebipenem HBr. Tebipenem HBr has also been granted Qualified Infectious Disease Product (QIDP), and Fast Track designations for these cUTI indications. FDA has also set a Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) target action date of June 27, 2022 
• SPR720 is an oral antimicrobial agent being developed for the treatment of non- tuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) lung disease 
• SPR206 is a direct-acting intravenous (IV)-administered, next-generation polymyxin analogue developed from our Potentiator Platform that is in clinical development as an innovative potential option to treat MDR gram-negative bacterial infections within the hospital 

What’s your one-minute elevator speech about your company? 

Antibiotic resistance is a growing global health threat, and one especially troubling concern is the rise in resistant strains of E coli, the bacteria that cause most urinary tract infections (UTIs). And, whether due to safety, efficacy, or susceptibility, the limitations of currently available oral antibiotics create a situation where, for some patients with cUTI, IV therapy is the only viable option. 

If FDA approved, Spero Therapeutics’ tebipenem HBr, could offer a potential alternative to IV therapy for cUTIs and could potentially allow some patients to avoid hospitalizations and the potential risks and costs associated with hospitalization. It may potentially also help transition some patients home sooner than usual after IV therapy. 

Learn more about becoming an AMCP Corporate Member.