Content about Pfizer

NEW YORK — Pfizer will be the next consumer healthcare company to reach the market with a switched proton-pump inhibitor. Pfizer on Monday afternoon announced that it has entered into an agreement with AstraZeneca for the over-the-counter rights to Nexium.

NEW YORK — A drug made by Pfizer and used to treat overactive bladder was effective in reducing leakage of urine in patients with the disorder, according to the results of a post-approval clinical study.

Pfizer announced Friday results of a phase-4 study of Toviaz (fesoterodine fumarate) in the reduction of urge urinary incontinence in patients with OAB who had a less than 50% reduction in UUI when taking Detrol LA (tolterodine tartrate), a commonly prescribed treatment for the condition also made by Pfizer.

SUPPLIER NEWS — The Food and Drug Administration has approved Watson Pharmaceuticals’ Next Choice One Dose (levonorgestrel) tablets in the 1.5-mg strength. The drug is an emergency contraceptive used to prevent pregnancy following unprotected sex or contraceptive failure. It is a generic version of Teva Women’s Health’s Plan B One-Step, which had sales of about $88 million during the 12-month period ended in March, according to IMS Health.


NEW YORK — An experimental drug under development by Pfizer and a unit of Johnson & Johnson does not appear effective in Alzheimer's disease patients who carry a certain genotype, according to results of a late-stage clinical trial announced by Pfizer on Tuesday.

HYDERABAD, India — Dr. Reddy's Labs has launched a generic version of a popular cholesterol drug.

The company announced Wednesday the launch of atorvastatin calcium tablets in the 10-mg, 20-mg, 40-mg and 80-mg strengths.

The drug is a generic version of Pfizer's Lipitor, which had sales of slightly more than $8 billion during the 12-month period ended in March, according to IMS Health.

PITTSBURGH — Mylan is challenging the patent protection on a Pfizer drug for treating depression, following an announcement of a similar challenge by Watson made earlier this week.

Mylan said it had filed for Food and Drug Administration approval of a generic version of Pristiq (desvenlafaxine succinate) extended-release tablets in the 50-mg and 100-mg strengths.

NEW YORK — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a new indication for a Pfizer drug.

Lyrica (pregabalin) capsules CV now can be used for the management of neuropathic pain associated with spinal cord injury. The drug received a priority review designation for this new indication as more than 100,000 patients — approximately 40% of the 270,000 patients with spinal cord injury in the United States — suffer from this chronic, complex pain condition.

NEW YORK — Pfizer announced the results of its late-stage clinical trial of Xalkori (crizotinib).

The drug maker confirmed that its Profile 1007 study met its primary endpoint, demonstrating that the drug significantly improved progression-free survival in previously treated patients with anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive advanced non-small cell lung cancer, compared with those treated with pemetrexed or docetaxel. The study also marked the first randomized phase-3 study in ALK-positive advanced NSCLC patients, Pfizer said.

NEW YORK — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a drug made by GlaxoSmithKline and XenoPort for treating pain associated with shingles.

The drug makers announced Thursday the approval of Horizant (gabapentin enacarbil) extended-release tablets for managing post-herpetic neuralgia. The drug already had FDA approval for treating restless legs syndrome. The approval entitles XenoPort to a $10 million milestone payment from GSK, according to a collaborative agreement between the two companies.

NEW YORK — An experimental drug made by Pfizer for a rare and fatal neurodegenerative disease got a favorable vote from a Food and Drug Administration expert panel.

The FDA's Peripheral and Central Nervous System Drugs Advisory Committee voted 13-4 that the drug tafamidis meglumine would provide certain clinical benefits to patients with transthyretin familial amyloid polyneuropathy, or TTR-FAP, a hereditary disease that affects about 8,000 people worldwide. The FDA is not required to follow the recommendations of FDA advisory committees, but usually does.

NEW YORK — Pfizer has named one of its executives to a new position.

Olivier Brandicourt — Pfizer's president and general manager of the primary care business unit and a member of the Pfizer executive leadership team — has been appointed president and general manager of the company's emerging markets and established business products business units, effective June 1. He succeeds David Simmons, who is leaving Pfizer to become the chairman and CEO of Pharmaceutical Product Development.