If you are into Naked Lunch by William Burroughs “where the days glide by strung on a syringe with a long thread of blood”, Alkermes will snap the mood of your psychedelic LSD haze.

The addiction drug Vivitrol from Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Alkermes Inc is already used in the United Stated for treating alcoholics, and the biotech firm said the FDA had approved the drug for broad-spectrum use. Vivitrol is a naltrexone formulation that is currently an albatross losing money, so the approval may just turn its fortune.

After health regulators in the US approved the drug from Alkermes Inc, the biotech firm plans to market it as a monthly injection to treat those hooked to strong opioid painkillers. Experts say a monthly treatment routine has been tested to give dramatic results, and prevent a relapse. Wish this had happened before the MJ tragedy.

The Vivitrol addiction drug was not so popular so far, with price and access being the major hurdles for those hooked to booze. Alkermes Inc for its part said that production costs far exceeded earnings from sales. Now it looks like a win-win situation for both parties. The firm is waiting for its diabetes drug Bydureon too to be approved by U.S. Administration for Food and Drug.

The biotech firm’s shares rose 4.2% as news of the approval delighted shareholders. Shares of Alkermes Inc have seen a bull run in 2010, seeing an exponential increase of nearly 69%.

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