First Launch Of Bayer's Lipobay

Bayer plans to launch its statin Lipobay (cerivastatin) in the UK, itsfirst world market, on April 14. The drug is indicated for the treatment of primary hypercholesterolemia (types IIa and IIb) in patients who have not responded adequately to diet.

Cerivastatin is much more potent than other drugs in the class (Marketletter March 17), and can be given at a dose of just 100mcg-300mcg once-daily. At these doses, the drug can reduce LDL cholesterol by up to 31%, a level which would require doses 50-100 times greater with other statins to achieve the same effect. Furthermore, Lipobay reduces serum triglycerides by 10%-17%, and increases levels of HDL-cholesterol by 5%-9%.

Low-Cost Option? Lipobay is presented in calendar packs of 28 tablets and is "very competitively" priced at L12.95 ($21.07) for the 100mcg dose, L17.35 for the 200mcg dose and L18.20 for the 300mcg dose. This is at a slight discount to Novartis' Lescol (fluvastatin), and a good deal less than Merck Sharpe & Dohme's Zocor (simvastatin), Bristol-Myers Squibb's Lipostat (pravastatin) and Warner-Lambert's Lipitor (atorvastatin), particularly when the higher daily-dose presentations are compared. Another potential advantage over some of the older statins is its lack of drug interactions with digoxin and warfarin.