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Biotech / Medical : Pharma News Only (pfe,mrk,wla, sgp, ahp, bmy, lly) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Sonki who wrote (215)	6/5/1998 12:21:00 PM
From: Anthony Wong	Respond to of 1722

Bloomberg take on the WLA news: [Sonki, sorry for not being able to respond earlier, did you manage to buy WLA in this morning's dip?] Warner-Lambert's Rezulin Dropped From Diabetes Prevention Study Bloomberg News June 5, 1998, 7:49 a.m. PT Warner-Lambert's Rezulin Dropped From Diabetes Prevention Study Morris Plains, New Jersey, June 5 (Bloomberg) -- Warner- Lambert Co. said its diabetes drug Rezulin will no longer be part of a national study on diabetes prevention because a patient taking the drug suffered liver failure and required a transplant. Although the patient later died, it doesn't appear the death was caused by the drug, the company said. Rezulin remains safe and effective for millions Americans with type 2 diabetes, the most common form in which patients don't produce enough insulin to properly process blood sugar into energy, it said. Warner-Lambert's Parke-Davis division, which makes and markets Rezulin, has twice had to strengthen its label to warn patients and doctors about its potential to cause liver damage. Glaxo Wellcome Plc halted sales of the drug, which it sold in the U.K., after at least five people died from toxic side effects. Warner-Lambert shares fell 2 3/8 at 61 5/8 in morning trading of 1.92 million, compared to its three-month daily average of 3 million. Earlier, shares touched 60. Investors and analysts have been counting on sales of Rezulin and its cholesterol-lowering drug Lipitor to drive Warner- Lambert's growth. The study by the National Institutes of Health was a five- year effort to see if Rezulin or Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.'s Glucophage could prevent diabetes from developing in patients who are at a higher risk for the disease. Rezulin, also known by its chemical name troglitazone, was developed by Japan's Sankyo Co. Type 2 diabetes typically strikes during middle age and often is brought on by health problems such as obesity. It can cause blindness, kidney and heart disease. Morris Plains, New Jersey-based Warner-Lambert said reports of liver problems have declined significantly since the company last strengthened its warning about the potential problems in December. --Michelle Fay Cortez in Ithaca, New York, (607) 272-1174, with