DA, I asked fellow threadster his take on CORR news. Here's his reply:
The overwhelming mass of clinical data compellingly demonstrates that blockade of platelet GPIIb/IIIa receptors is the standard of care. The question is not when to use these agents, but rather when NOT to....... Most experts agree that they should be used unless there is some reason not to, i.e., a contraindication of some sort.
But, there are many such agents. We have been involved in many of these clinical trials. The first to market was abximab (ReoPro), which demonstrated beneficial results in many clinical trials. So now, Integrilin joins the ranks. These agents are very similar in terms of their effects. So, why would somebody use Integrelin, when ReoPro is already in use and just as effective (presumably)? And why doesn't everybody already use ReoPro for all such patients? The answer: PRICE. ReoPro is is very expensive (it costs more than the stent!), but Integrelin is about half the price of ReoPro.
In any event, it is very clear that the market for these products will be expanding rapidly for economic reasons and also because the clinical evidence is so strong, so sales should increase for both agents, but I would think that Integrelin sales should accelerate much faster than ReoPro's because it would be difficult to justify using ReoPro when you could achieve presumably the same effect with Integrelin at half the price (but, there have not been head-to-head comparisons between the two as yet which would convincingly demonstrate this assumption, but it is still a reasonable assumption that most clinicians will make).
There are also oral agents being developed (or already approved) which work similarly, but these are not as good for a lot of reasons, and have mostly not really caught on. There is not at this point nearly as much data for the oral agents as for the intravenous agents (Integrilin, ReoPro). The oral agents are mostly targeting a different patient population anyway, and so would not likely be in direct competition with Integrelin or ReoPro, but on the other hand, when a patient has received this type of drug before, most people will not give Integrelin or ReoPro, and many of the candidates for oral GPIIb/IIa receptor drugs eventually end up in the cath lab for interventional procedures.
Is CORR a good investment? In the short to medium term at least, I think so. Their prospects for dramatically increased EPS are excellent. The clinical data is sound, and well-accepted, and completely consistent with previous data with ReoPro. When a trial gets stopped early for the reason this trial was stopped, that is a very powerful statement, that indicates that the data is virtually beyond question, and clear. The proponents and authors are all well-respected and influential. And, the technicals are spectacular:
Doug....I'm holding. |
