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To: Anthony Wong who wrote (1073)11/17/1998 7:53:00 PM
From: Anthony Wong  Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 1722
 
Pfizer's Zoloft Reduces Risk of Depression Relapse, Study Says

Bloomberg News
November 17, 1998, 4:57 p.m. ET

Pfizer's Zoloft Reduces Risk of Depression Relapse, Study Says

Chicago, Nov. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Pfizer Inc.'s Zoloft, widely
used to help bring patients out of depression, also can prevent
its recurrence in the chronically depressed, a new study says.

While many doctors take it as an ''article of faith'' that
long-term use wards off new episodes of depression, and
government agencies recommend nine months of therapy for patients
who relapse after treatment, this is the first study to prove a
benefit in the chronically depressed, researchers said.

Dr. Martin B. Keller from Brown University in Providence,
Rhode Island, and his colleagues gave 161 patients who benefited
from short-term treatment with Zoloft the drug or a placebo
for almost 18 months. Only 5 of the 77 patients, or 6 percent,
getting Zoloft had a full recurrence during the study,
compared with 19 of the 84 patients, or 19 percent, on placebo.

Symptoms of depression occurred in about a quarter of those
on Zoloft and half of those on placebo, the study found. Patients
taking Zoloft also were more likely to report problems with
sexual function during the trial.

The study, funded by New York-based Pfizer, appears in
tomorrow's Journal of the American Medical Association.

Eli Lilly & Co.'s Prozac, SmithKline Beecham Plc's Paxil and
Forest Laboratories Inc.'s Celexa, also marketed by Warner-
Lambert Co., all work in similar ways to Zoloft and together
dominate the $8.4 billion worldwide market for depression drugs.

While the other drugs haven't yet been studied for more than
a year in chronically depressed patients, existing research does
show that longer term therapy reduced risk of relapse in general.

A study released earlier this fall, for example, showed that
patients taking Lilly's Prozac were significantly less likely to
have another bout of depression if they took the drug for 38
weeks. That study was supported by Indianapolis-based Lilly.

--Michelle Fay Cortez in Ithaca, New York (607) 272-1174, through

news.com



To: Anthony Wong who wrote (1073)11/19/1998 3:33:00 PM
From: Judy  Read Replies (4) | Respond to of 1722
 
Anthony, IMNX has announced that sales of Enbrel will be more than the Street estimated. Stock was up 11 points last I looked.

I am confident that HMOs and insurance companies will bear the cost of Enbrel for patients. RA is a crippling and debilitating disease, the cost of Enbrel would be less than the treatment/maintenance expenses for a incapacitated person for their lifetime. Enbrel is necessary for patient survival ... not like Viagra which has more to do with the quality of life.