Gilead Sciences ($GILD) today notched another key win for its hepatitis C "cure" Sovaldi, a drug that is expected to quickly supplant existing treatments for the difficult condition while racking up to $7 billion a year in sales. The European Commission approved the pill being used in tandem with a once-daily oral nucleotide analogue polymerase inhibitor for adults suffering from chronic hepatitis C (CHC) infection. "Sovaldi is a very welcome therapeutic advance that will increase the number of patients who can be treated and ultimately cured," Graham Foster, MD, Professor of Hepatology, Queen Mary University of London, said in a statement released by Gilead. The drug was approved by the FDA in December. Doctors have been "warehousing" patients waiting for the breakthrough oral treatment that can be used without requiring interferon, the immune stimulant that causes severe side effects. The treatment may be able to cure as many as 85% of cases. Release | More