Amgen Drug Slashes Bad Cholesterol Within Weeks of Treatment
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Amgen Inc.’s experimental heart drug, designed to imitate the cholesterol-lowering effects of a rare genetic mutation, cut levels of the blood fat by 55 percent to 66 percent in clinical trials.
Three studies of Amgen’s evolocumab, presented today at the American College of Cardiology meeting in Washington, showed the drug’s benefits emerged within weeks of starting therapy and showed no serious safety risks in patients taking the drug for as long as a year. Amgen, based in Thousand Oaks, California, said it could file for U.S. approval by the end of this year.