Novartis’ $9.7 billion acquisition of The Medicines Company, which the companies announced Sunday after days of rumors, is a story of second acts.
It represents a new chance for a type of cholesterol-lowering drug that was once predicted to generate many billions of dollars in annual sales, but has so far disappointed drug makers and investors, to dominate the landscape for heart medicines. It’s also a triumphant final act for Clive Meanwell, who founded The Medicines Company in 1996 and ran it through a quarter-century roller-coaster ride that saw the firm become a Wall Street darling, fall from favor, and, in the past year, reach new highs. And it’s a second act for The Medicines Company’s current CEO, who previously spent almost four years as the chief executive of Purdue Pharma, the company whose name has become synonymous with the opioid epidemic.
The deal also represents another victory for Alexander Denner of Sarissa Capital, who took control of The Medicines Company’s board last March and is chairman of the company’s board of directors.
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Not going to happen……….PCSK9 inhibitors have miniscule effects on heart attack and stroke rates, less than half of what statins do which is also tiny
(<1%/year). Cholesterol and LDL per se are not the cause of atherosclerosis. If they were we would have seen massive reductions in heart attacks and strokes over the last 35 year…….which we have not. Heart attacks and strokes are NOT cause by a lack of statin, PCSK9 inhibitors or any other drug.
Even drug happy cardiologists have figured this out and rarely prescribe Praluent or Repatha. Patients are sick of paying for unwanted direct effect drugs that do not cure nor prevent any disease progression.
These drugs donor work as well as statins in lowering LDL. In fact they are equivalent to a tad better than Zetia.