Nov 19 (Reuters) - Pharmaceutical investment firm Royalty Pharma said it would buy royalties on Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc's cystic fibrosis treatments from Cystic Fibrosis Foundation for $3.3 billion in cash.

Vertex's cystic fibrosis drug, Kalydeco, was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in January 2012.

Vertex co-developed the drug with an affiliate of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

The foundation plans to use the proceeds of the deal for the development of new therapies for the disease, Royal Pharma said in a statement on Wednesday.

Cystic fibrosis is a fatal genetic disease that affects the lungs and digestive system. The disease currently affects about 70,000 children and adults worldwide.

(Reporting by Amrutha Penumudi in Bangalore; Editing by Kirti Pandey)