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Mass. Biotech Firm Vertex To Cut 370 Jobs

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — Vertex Pharmaceuticals says it plans to eliminate about 15 percent of its worldwide workforce, including about 175 positions in Massachusetts.

The Cambridge-based biotechnology firm made the announcement on Tuesday, saying that sales of Incivek, a drug to treat Hepatitis C, were expected to continue to decline as other treatments become available.

An advisory committee to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently recommended approval of a competing hepatitis C drug from Gilead Sciences.

Vertex said it planned to focus future investment on cystic fibrosis and other "high-potential research and development programs."

The company will shed a total of about 370 jobs, leaving about 1,800 employees worldwide and 1,300 in Massachusetts.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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