Pfizer gets EU approval for $2.2bn bowel disease drug

It is estimated sales of the drug could total €2bn

Pfizer employs almost 5,000 people at sites in Kildare, Cork, and Dublin.

Pfizer's drug to treat patients with an inflammatory bowel disease called ulcerative colitis has been approved by the European Commission, the company said. 

The approval for Velsipity follows backing from the European Medicines Agency's panel of experts in December. It is estimated sales of the drug could total $2.2bn (€2bn). Pfizer employs almost 5,000 people at sites in Kildare, Cork, and Dublin.