Monday, July 21, 2008

Crazy day for Schering-Plough: Vytorin linked to cancer?

Stock down 10%, then recoups all the losses by midday, then down 15% as Vytorin, an anti-cholesterol agent jointly sold by Merck & Co. and Schering-Plough Corp., failed to show it was effective in stopping progression of a cardiac condition known as aortic stenosis, a partial blockage of the heart's aortic valve, Norwegian researchers said Monday.

Whew . . . what a roller coaster . . .

But there's more:

There were numerically more cancer deaths in the group of patients treated with Vytorin compared with those on a placebo, although the difference could have been statistically due to chance.

Fred immedately could rely on the American Heart Association's president-elect Clyde Yancy who said the latest data on cancer deaths is "an errant signal for now."

The stock market didn't care and put SGP in a tailspin. Again.

1 comment:

Adam said...

There are ups and downs for all those impacted with aortic stenosis. This report was one of the downs. FYI, I had open heart surgery to replace my aortic valve. Needless to say, not fun. Cheers. Ad