Brilinta may assist some patients with heart problems, but the drug could also carry significant risks, a new study reveals.
AstraZeneca produces the blood thinner, which has been on the market for a few years.
A new clinical study shows long-term use of the prescription drug can lower the risk of heart attacks and strokes by 16 percent in patients who have already experienced their initial events. However, these improvements are accompanied by an increased risk of bleeding, the investigation reveals.
"There will be more bleeding, but I think the benefit for patients in terms of reducing their risk of dying or having another heart attack or stroke outweighs that," Marc Sabatine, a trial researcher from Brigham and Women's Hospital, said.
The study showed that for every 10,000 people who take the drug, 42 heart attacks or strokes would be prevented, although 31 major bleeding events would occur.
Aspirin is the drug of choice for many patients who have experienced heart attacks or strokes more than 12 months in the past. This research examined that treatment both alone and in conjunction with the blood thinner.
The study showed that 9.04 percent of patients taking aspirin alone suffered strokes of heart attacks, but that number dropped to 7.77 percent among those taking the analgesic plus a 60 mg dose of Brilinta. Increasing the dose of Brilinta to 90 mg resulted in a slight reduction of effectiveness. However, major bleeding events rose significantly, from 1.06 percent of people taking aspirin alone to 2.3 percent for Brilinta users, an increase in risk of 217 percent.
AstraZeneca was the target of a takeover attempt by another pharmaceutical company, Pfizer, in 2014. At that time, management cited potential sales of $3.5 billion a year. Many financial observers calculate the company will likely sell $1.5 billion of the drug annually by the year 2020. In 2014, AstraZeneca sold $476 million of the drug.
AstraZeneca has recently applied for permission to sell Brilinta to patients as a long-term treatment, citing its effectiveness over the last three years.
Plavix, another blood thinner on the market for patients seeking to prevent future heart attacks and strokes, has recently been made available as a generic form of clopidogrel bisulfate. Effient, developed by pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly, competes in the marketplace against Brilinta, as does Sanofi. Analysts believe that this new study will likely boost sales of the drug
Study of the effect of Brilinta on patients with heart and stroke risks was published in The New England Journal of Medicine.
Photo: Rennett Stowe | Flickr
