[Ip-health] New Combination Drugs Ward-Off Generic Competition

[Mike Palmedo]

New Combination Drugs Ward-Off Generic Competition

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 07/07/2004 -- Pfizer's
Caduet and combination drugs like it offer pharmaceutical giants new
opportunities to extend products' lives well beyond patent expiry.
Generic versions of Norvasc (amlodipine) merely await the end of patent
protection for the best selling antihypertensive before hitting the
shelves. Countering the threat, Pfizer is combining Norvasc with Lipitor
to make its amlodipine treatment superior to the numerous generics
likely to hit the market and thus, extend its sales life.

Combination drugs are not a new concept, but in the past combination
drugs targeted the same indication. Caduet is the first to treat
different ailments with one drug. Many companies are, like Pfizer,
developing innovative strategies and tactics to deal with the impending
threat of generic competition. A recent report by pharmaceutical
intelligence firm Cutting Edge Information, "Combating Generics:
Pharmaceutical Brand Defense" (http://www.PharmaGenerics.com), covers
the top strategies companies use to fend off generic competition and
retain market share.

With generics now accounting for more than 50% of all prescriptions
filled in the U.S. and sales projected to reach $60 billion by 2007,
pharmaceutical firms must find new ways to compete. Beyond combination
drugs, some of the strategies currently employed include:

--  Switching patients to a line extension
--  Flanking generics and other licensing and distribution agreements
--  Defensive pricing
--  Increased DTC advertising and patient outreach, compliance and
    retention activity
--  Rx-to-OTC switching

According to "Combating Generics: Pharmaceutical Brand Defense,"
available online at http://www.PharmaGenerics.com, several of these
strategies have extended sales lives well beyond patent expiration.
Perhaps the most successful triumph is AstraZeneca's transition from
Prilosec to next generation drug Nexium. Combined sales for the two
drugs in 2002 -- the second year Prilosec faced generic competition --
totaled approximately $6.5 billion, which exceeds Prilosec sales in each
of the previous years it was on the market.

Cutting Edge Information's report, "Combating Generics: Pharmaceutical
Brand Defense" (http://www.PharmaGenerics.com) examines key trends and
developments in the pharmaceutical industry. Making its case with
metrics and dozens of detailed case studies, the report analyzes the
options available to brand teams and therapeutic area leaders for
defending drug patents and maximizing asset returns in the face of
generic competition.

To download a free summary of this 190-page report, visit
http://www.PharmaGenerics.com. For more information or to learn about
other Cutting Edge Information research, contact Diana Borja at
diana_borja@cuttingedgeinfo.com or 919-433-0219.