Someone At Merck Is Crazy
by Douglas A. McIntyre
24/7 Wall St.
Merck's (MRK) new arthritis drug Arcoxia was rejected by an FDA panel by a vote of 20-to-1. Apparently, the drug has cardiovascular risks. The same problem with a related drug that company produced, Vioxx, has lead to liability suits that total into the billions of dollars.
According to The Wall Street Journal: A Merck spokeswoman said the company was "disappointed" by the vote and still believes Arcoxia can be a valuable treatment option. Merck will continue to work with the FDA."
Given the problems that Merck (MRK) has had with Vioxx it is stunning that they would even take a similar drug to the FDA. The scientists at the big drug company had obviously read studies about the risks of Arcoxia, and so has Merck's management. At one point, Merck faced over 14,000 Vioxx liability cases.
The push by Merck for approval of the new drug may be because of pressures that generic manufacturers are putting on Big Pharm as drugs go "off patent" and are replaced by cheaper versions.The trend is hurting the financial results and share prices of many drug companies.
But, Merck should know better than to fan the flames of an already raging fire.
Source: 247WallSt.com
RELATED READING:
- Merck Pressured to Halt Gardasil Vaccine Lobbying
- Merck Looking To Become RNAi Technology Leader
______________________
24/7 Wall St.
Merck's (MRK) new arthritis drug Arcoxia was rejected by an FDA panel by a vote of 20-to-1. Apparently, the drug has cardiovascular risks. The same problem with a related drug that company produced, Vioxx, has lead to liability suits that total into the billions of dollars.
According to The Wall Street Journal: A Merck spokeswoman said the company was "disappointed" by the vote and still believes Arcoxia can be a valuable treatment option. Merck will continue to work with the FDA."
Given the problems that Merck (MRK) has had with Vioxx it is stunning that they would even take a similar drug to the FDA. The scientists at the big drug company had obviously read studies about the risks of Arcoxia, and so has Merck's management. At one point, Merck faced over 14,000 Vioxx liability cases.
The push by Merck for approval of the new drug may be because of pressures that generic manufacturers are putting on Big Pharm as drugs go "off patent" and are replaced by cheaper versions.The trend is hurting the financial results and share prices of many drug companies.
But, Merck should know better than to fan the flames of an already raging fire.
Source: 247WallSt.com
RELATED READING:
- Merck Pressured to Halt Gardasil Vaccine Lobbying
- Merck Looking To Become RNAi Technology Leader
______________________
posted by Nico at
8:17 AM
1 Comments:
I was under the impression that Arcoxia, in the MEDAL trial, was found to have as many CV events as Diclofenac, the most prescribed NSAID in the world that does not belong to the COX-2 family of drugs (i.e. Celebrex). Granted, there were more drop outs in the Arcoxia-treated patient group due to symptoms such as hypertension. However, Merck was seeking approval of Arcoxia only for osteoarthritis for which many patients do not achieve adequate pain relief with the currently available meds. Crazy, no - I think desperate is more apt.
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