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

To: Anthony Wong who wrote (1514)	3/18/1999 10:53:00 AM
From: Anthony Wong	Respond to of 1722

Merck's Vioxx Seen Effective in Treating Menstrual, Dental Pain Bloomberg News March 18, 1999, 8:35 a.m. ET Merck's Vioxx Seen Effective in Treating Menstrual, Dental Pain Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, March 18 (Bloomberg) -- Merck & Co., the world's biggest drugmaker, said studies indicate its experimental arthritis medicine Vioxx works well in treating menstrual pain and pain caused by removal of wisdom teeth. This research could help Merck in its efforts to catch up with rival Monsanto Co. in the market for a new class of potential blockbuster painkillers. Monsanto's new arthritis drug Celebrex doesn't have these same indications. Merck's drug still is under review at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Analysts expect annual sales of Celebrex and Vioxx to top $1 billion quickly because these pills appear to treat pain and inflammation without irritating the stomach like older medicines, such as ibuprofen. More than 600,000 prescriptions already have been filled for Monsanto's drug, Celebrex, which was introduced in mid-January. In studies presented today, Vioxx seemed to be comparable to naproxen sodium, a commonly used painkiller, in treating menstrual pain, Merck said. In dental pain, Vioxx was comparable to ibuprofen, Merck said. Merck, based in Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, yesterday fell 1 7/8 to 84. In the past 12 months, shares of the company have risen 28 percent, boosted in part by prospects for Vioxx. Merck will present its Vioxx research before an FDA panel on April 20. Analysts and investors will be watching this meeting closely to try to gauge how well Merck's application is received by the FDA. Monsanto had a setback when the FDA failed to designate Celebrex as a new kind of drug. Instead, its label classes it as similar to ibuprofen and other older painkillers, a class of medicines known as ''non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDS. NSAIDs work by interfering with an enzyme linked to pain and swelling, cyclooxygenase-2. Unfortunately, these drugs also may target a related enzyme, cyclooxygenase-1, that seems to help protect the lining of the stomach from the acid it contains. As a result, NSAIDs may cause more than 100,000 hospitalizations each year in the U.S. As many as 16,500 people may die from these complications, by some estimates. Like other NSAIDs, Celebrex carries a warning about the possibility for harm to the gastrointestinal tract. Monsanto was helped, though, by the FDA's decision to let the drugmaker add information about studies that indicate Celebrex is less likely to cause ulcers than some other NSAIDS. Merck and Monsanto both intend to prove that their drugs target more specifically cyclooxygenase-2 and thus spare the stomach. --Kerry Dooley in the Princeton newsroom (609) 279-4016/gfh

To: Anthony Wong who wrote (1514)	3/18/1999 10:56:00 AM
From: Anthony Wong	Respond to of 1722

American Home Products Settles 'Fen-Phen' Dieter Case (Update3) Bloomberg News March 17, 1999, 6:04 p.m. ET American Home Products Settles 'Fen-Phen' Dieter Case (Update3) (Adds in 8th paragraph that most suits allege heart valve problems.) Morrilton, Arkansas, March 17 (Bloomberg) -- American Home Products Corp. settled a lawsuit over claims it concealed the health risks of the once wildly popular ''fen-phen'' diet-drug combination, the company said. The case, which had been slated to be the first against the company to go to trial beginning next week in an Arkansas courtroom, accused the world's seventh-largest drugmaker of causing Mary Perez, 45, to develop an often fatal lung disease. After taking appetite-reducing fenfluramine and phentermine for two months in 1997, Perez developed the disease -- primary pulmonary hypertension -- which some studies say kills about half those it afflicts. While the terms of the settlement were not disclosed, people familiar with the case said it was for more than $4.5 million. American Home has settled five previous fen-phen cases for undisclosed amounts. The amounts ranged from $1.5 million to $4.5 million, people familiar with the earlier settlements said. The settlement, disclosed after the close of trading today, won't boost American Home's stock price tomorrow, predicted Neil Sweig, an analyst with Southeast Research. ''Although one (settlement) is welcome, there are plenty of other shoes that have yet to drop,'' he said. Analysts had been closely watching the Arkansas case to see whether it would yield a big damage award. The company allegedly misstated on its warning label the number of lung disease cases linked to the drug. Scores of Suits There are still scores of suits around the U.S. that accuse AHP and phentermine makers of pushing the diet drugs despite medical warnings the combination can cause the rare lung disease and damage heart valves. More than 6 million prescriptions were written for the drug before AHP discontinued it in 1997 after less than two years on the market. ''We can confirm the (Arkansas) settlement,'' said Doug Petkus, a spokesman for AHP's Wyeth Laboratories unit. ''However, due to a confidentiality agreement between the parties, we are unable to disclose any terms.'' Most of the fen-phen suits allege the drugs cause heart valve problems with only a relatively small number saying the combination caused the lung disease. Investors largely have discounted the fen-phen litigation, focusing instead on the new products American Home will introduce over the next few years, Sweig said. American Home today won European Union approval for its sleeping pill Sonata. The company also has an organ-transplant drug under review at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Analysts have estimated each of these drugs could top $500 million eventually. American Home also helps market Enbrel, a new rheumatoid arthritis drug developed by Immunex Corp. American Home also owns a majority stake in Immunex. American Home fell 2 3/16 to 65 13/16. --Jef Feeley in Wilmington, Delaware (302) 984-3372 with