VIAGRA NEWS

Source: Forbes

Date: 6-Aug-2007

Author: Jennifer Sterling

A top executive at Pfizer Inc., the world's largest drug maker, said Monday the company is making progress toward its target of tripling the late-stage portfolio of compounds by 2009, even as it discontinued 13 compounds this year.

"I think so far we're on track to deliver on the goal of tripling the number of compounds in the Phase III pipeline by 2009," said John LaMattina, president of Pfizer's global research and development, in an interview with The Associated Press.

"So far, we have pretty tangible evidence that the steps we've taken to improve the quality of our compounds are, in fact, successful," LaMattina said.

LaMattina said Pfizer now has 11 programs in final testing stages, up from eight, and 47 programs in its mid-stage pipeline compared with 32 last year. And he called the Phase II portfolio the largest in the company's history.

The company said it discontinued a total of 13 programs. Eight drugs in early-stage testing indicated for obesity, atherosclerosis, diabetes and cancer were scrapped; four drugs in mid-stage testing indicated for atherosclerosis, obesity, dermatology and lung cancer were dropped; and one lung cancer drug in late-stage testing was discontinued. The discontinuation of the latter program was already announced.

In June, Pfizer said it ended its lung cancer development program for PF-3512676, citing the drug's ineffectiveness in combination with chemotherapy. The drug candidate was being tested in two late-stage clinical trials and two mid-stage clinical trials to treat advanced non-small cell lung cancer.

Pfizer's pipeline now includes 20 potential treatments for cancer; 16 for cardiovascular, metabolic and endocrine diseases; 17 for pain and inflammation; 17 for neurological disorders and 10 for infectious diseases. Others areas represented include gastrointestinal, genitourinary, ophthalmology, dermatology and allergy/respiratory, the company said.

The total number of Phase I compounds has declined since the December 2006 update and now stands at 38.

A. G. Edwards & Sons analyst Joseph Tooley shrugged off news associated with the discontinuations, and focused instead on the plumper Phase-II pipeline.

"The announcement shows the breadth of their pipeline, and they do have a lot going on in their early-phase pipeline, but it's difficult to see which early stage compounds have blockbuster potential," said Tooley in an interview.

Analysts and investors have been eyeing Pfizer's product pipeline to see if it can reinvigorate new sources of sales, as the maker of Lipitor and Viagra has seen more competition from cheaper, generic drugs.

The company has also been restructuring its operations and making efforts to cut costs. Earlier this year Pfizer said it would slash 10,000 jobs and close five facilities, while Chief Financial Officer Alan Levin resigned a few months ago.

Earlier in the day, Pfizer said the Food and Drug Administration granted accelerated approval to the company's oral HIV medicine Selzentry.

Shares of Pfizer rose 60 cents, or 2.5 percent, to close at $24.11. In the past year, the stock has traded between $23.37 and $28.60.