In a closely watched case, Bayer and Novartis lost a legal battle against the U.K.’s National Health Service for favoring a less-expensive drug for a serious eye condition that can save the agency millions of dollars.
At issue was the Avastin cancer treatment, which is widely used by many physicians to treat age-related wet macular degeneration, even though the Roche (RHHBY) drug is not approved for that use. The medicine, however, is generally much cheaper than two other drugs that are approved for wet AMD — Lucentis, which is sold in the U.K. by Novartis (NVS), and Eylea, which Bayer (BAYRY) markets in the country.
Unlock this article by subscribing to STAT Plus and enjoy your first 30 days free!
GET STARTEDWhat is it?
STAT Plus is a premium subscription that delivers daily market-moving biopharma coverage and in-depth science reporting from a team with decades of industry experience.
What's included?
- Authoritative biopharma coverage and analysis, interviews with industry pioneers, policy analysis, and first looks at cutting edge laboratories and early stage research
- Subscriber-only networking events and panel discussions across the country
- Monthly subscriber-only live chats with our reporters and experts in the field
- Discounted tickets to industry events and early-bird access to industry reports
About the Author
Let us savor the “eye”-rony of this conflict. Big pharma in the US had no trouble with the common knowledge that up to 50% of scrips were written for ‘off-label’ uses in the ’90s (at least). That situation increased sales. Now this off-label use is anathema because … of sales? Ah, the irony!