High Cost of New Cancer Drugs Force Government Intervention

From BioHealth Investor

by H.S. Ayoub
BioHealth Investor.com

Morgan Stanley analyst Steven Harr has been warning Genentech and other drug firms that the record prices asked for new cancer drug treatments could create a backlash, and in fact hurt the companies’ record sales over the long haul. How? By forcing the government to get involved and impose pricing regulations.

This is exactly what seems to be happening as the Wall Street Journal reported in Thursday’s (March 15) edition that patient advocacy groups have began to rally against the high cost of Genentech’s new cancer drug, Avastin. This prompted the introduction of a new senate bill by Rep. Henry Waxman of California aimed at allowing generic companies to develop knock-off biopharmaceutical drugs, termed "biogenerics". Senator Hillary Clinton is co-sponsoring another such bill.

Here is a summary of the high cost of cancer drugs to hit the market since 2004:
(per patient, over course of treatment)

Avastin
Genentech (DNA)
colorectal: $46,000
lung: $56,000

Vectibix
Amgen (AMGN)
colorectal: $36,000

Erbitux
ImClone (IMCL) and Bristol Meyers Squibb (BMY)
age-related macular degeneration: $48,000

RevlimidCelgene (CELG)
multiple Myeloma: $67,000

Sutent
Pfizer (PFE)
kidney: $46,500

Companies finally began to heed the warnings as Genentech announced that Avastin will be free to patients after $55,000 have been spent, and Amgen followed with providing Vectibix free to patients who end up spending more than 5% of their adjusted gross income in co-payments. The companies denied that Mr.Harr’s warnings had any effect. They are right, it was the government stepping in that scared them, which Harr was warning against all along.

The companies’ efforts could be too late, as a new democratic congress could see the end of high prices for new drugs developed by big pharmaceutical and biotech firms.

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