Timeline: Qsymia approval process

The race for drug approval is a marathon, not a sprint. The FDA approval last month of Vivus' weight loss drug Qsymia, formerly Qnexa, is proof. After over two years, several rounds of promising clinical data, and regulatory restriction battles, Qsymia gained the FDA OK as one of the first obesity drugs in 13 long years.

Obesity medication is a high-risk high-reward proposition, which got Qnexa, and rival Arena drug Belviq, rejected back in 2010. Belviq was approved by the FDA on June 27. Thanks to a DEA scheduling requirement for Arena's Belviq, Qsymia will be the first to market later this year.

In light of the diet pill's struggle, we bring you an interactive timeline of an eventful regulatory process. Click on each event for more information.
 

Editor's note: FierceBiotechIT is experimenting with new ways of presenting information to our readers. The approval of Qsymia isn't IT news, but it presented an opportunity for our intrepid intern, Skye Toor, to make use of this timeline tool. Please let us know what other topics you'd like to see presented in this fashion.