AMGEN DRUG EFFECTIVE IN FEWER DOSES ARANESP GETS EDGE ON RIVALS.Byline: Evan Pondel Staff Writer THOUSAND OAKS Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. - Amgen Inc. said Friday that its blockbuster anemia drug Aranesp could be administered once a month, instead of the current dosing of once every two weeks - a potential advantage over rival drugs. The biotechnology behemoth behemoth (bē`hĭmŏth, bĭhē`–) [Heb.,=plural of beast], large, fanciful primeval monster, like Leviathan, evoking the hippopotamus mentioned in the Book of Job. reported that preliminary results of a study testing Aranesp given once a month showed chronic kidney disease Chronic kidney disease (CKD), also know as chronic renal disease, is a progressive loss of renal function over a period of months or years through five stages. Each stage is a progression through an abnormally low and progressively worse glomerular filtration rate, which is patients with anemia maintained healthy hemoglobin hemoglobin (hē`məglō'bĭn), respiratory protein found in the red blood cells (erythrocytes) of all vertebrates and some invertebrates. levels. Other anemia products, including Amgen's Epogen and Johnson & Johnson's Procrit are administered one to three times a week. ``This is very good news for Amgen,'' said Dennis Harp, analyst with Deutsche Bank Deutsche Bank AG (IPA: /'dɔɪ.tʃə/[1]) (ISIN: DE0005140008, NYSE: DB) (English: German Bank in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of . ``The study will allow Amgen to access the pre-dialysis population - a population who often don't see their health care providers more than once a month.'' The Aranesp study could also stoke stoke n. A unit of kinematic viscosity equal to that of a fluid with a viscosity of one poise and a density of one gram per milliliter. stoke competition among Amgen's rivals. The Thousand Oaks-based company's rivalry with Johnson & Johnson has been mounting of late, as similar products seek their own identities in a highly competitive market. For Amgen, sales of the anemia-fighting drug hit $207 million in the fourth quarter. Domestic sales of Aranesp - Amgen's next-generation Epogen - are expected to increase by 20 percent in the next two years. Johnson & Johnson's equivalent to Aranesp is Procrit. Kevin Sharer, Amgen's chairman and chief executive officer, said at a recent investor conference that Procrit is Aranesp's greatest threat, ``but everyone needs competition.'' Amgen's rivalry with Johnson & Johnson peaked after an arbitrator intervened over an Epogen-licensing agreement. Amgen won a $150 million judgment against Johnson & Johnson for marketing violations. However, the arbitrator refused to terminate the licensing agreement between the two companies. ``But Aranesp's success does not come at a significant loss to Johnson & Johnson,'' Harp said. ``Johnson & Johnson never did really develop this side of the business.'' Amgen shares declined 12 cents to close at $59.28 Friday on the Nasdaq market. |
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