the first medicine to address the -- was kalydeco. only about 2,000 patients with cf have mutation that kalydeco can currently help. the bigger problem is the protitian can't get to the d. vertex is testing a new drug. the combination of both dug could help more than 14 times as many people. that bigger patient population also means bigger business. with positive data, it would be a huge driver for vertex's stock. it's currently trading around $67. analysts say positive results could drive the stock past $100, whereas negative data could plunge it boo the 40s. either way it's a risky bet. why cystic fibrosis affects few patients. it's priced at $250,000 a year, all together, analysts estimate vertex's cystic fibrosis medicines could bring in more than $5 billion. >> before we go, you mentioned pricing, but there's a lot of pricing pressure, so the industry is trying to rein in its costs, about you what companies stand to lose the most as that process continues? >> that's an important question, one of the biggest issues on the industry

that compares with about 371 million that kalydeco brought in last year alone. orphan drugs often priced more than $100,000 a year. that's still a question we have. we will be talking exclusively with vertex ceo on "closing bell" today. >> meg tirrell talking vertex today. >>> when we come back, who stands to make money when gopro goes public this week? plus, is apple's new retail strategy moving past the steve jobs era? former head of marketing will tell us what angela ahrendts brings to the table. and apple made the big pitch earlier this monday. now it's google's turn. what new things can we expect from the tech giant's presentation when it begins tomorrow. geico's been helping people save money for over 75 years. they've really stood the test of time. much like these majestic rocky mountains. which must be named after the... that would be rocky the flying squirrel, mr. gecko sir. obviously! ahh come on bullwinkle, they're named after... ...first president george rockington! that doesn't even make any sense...mr...uhh...winkle. geico. fifteen minutes could sa

the first medication to address the disease was kalydeco. only about 2,000 patients with cf have mou tasions that that can help alone. more have a bigger problem. the protein can't get to the membrane at all, so vertex is testing lumacaftor, which aims to help the protein get to the cell wall, where then kalydeco enables it to open a passage for chloride. the combination of the drugs could help more than 14 times as many people. joining me now is vertex ceo dr. jeffrey leiden in a cnbc exclusive. dr. leiden, thank you so much for joining us. >> thank you for having me, meg. this is a wonderful day for cf patients and their families. >> absolutely. maybe you can put into context how big of a deal this is. the stock obviously reacted well, but for patients with such a hard disease. >> i think you showed it nicely on your video. this was a tough problem and one that vertex scientists have been working on for 15 years. the idea was to design a set of medicines that can actually treat the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis in the most common for

the protein ebbet get to the membrane at all, so vertex is testing lumacaftor, where this kalydeco then opens the passage of fluoride form the combination could help more than 14 times as many people. >>> analysts now sea vertex's drugs could bring in more than $5 billion in peak sales. it also gave a boost to sentiment across the sector. the index also trading up today. be sure to check out our exclusive interview with the ceo on "closing bell" this afternoon. back to you guys. >> thank you very much, meg. >>> matt, as far as this drug is concerned, or this biotech is concerned, do you think there's more up side potential? >> hi, simon. is there more up side from here? yes. we had previously talked about a $125 per share upside scenario, where you would increase number one price, because the activity is higher than the street was thinking. secondly just greater penetration, particularly in population past this current, you know -- there are still levers to the up side organically. then on top of that, you can start to think about from a strategic perspective, given this is a very long