Drug firms eye fat profits from new obesity pills

Sanofi-Aventis SA's Acomplia, or rimonabant, which could be approved by U.S. regulators as early as next month, is the first of a new wave of treatments that may spell fat profits for some pharmaceutical companies, with sales tipped by analysts to top $3 billion a year.

Another two experimental drugs from Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc and Alizyme Plc, with different mechanisms of action, have also produced promising clinical results in recent weeks, prompting some investors to start laying big bets on weight-loss medicine.

It is a risky area, however.

Slimming pills have had a chequered history, due to modest effectiveness and adverse side effects -- most notoriously with the diet drug combination "fen-phen," which was linked to heart-valve problems and has cost Wyeth more than $21 billion in provisions related to patient claims.

Jonathan de Pass, chief executive of specialist consultancy Evaluate, calculates there are now 26 new drugs in clinical trials for obesity and a further 32 in early-stage development.

The potential market is large in every respect.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates more than 1 billion people in the world are overweight and, if current trends continue, that number will reach 1.5 billion by 2015.

Of the current total, more than 300 million already rank as obese, putting them at substantial risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, respiratory problems and some cancers.

Dr Timothy Armstrong of the WHO's department of chronic diseases believes medication can help only a very small minority of patients and will not impact the overall obesity epidemic.

"It's not a panacea," he said. "Drugs don't have a role in preventing obesity in the wider population, where interventions around physical activity and diet are far more cost-effective."

Today, there are two main obesity medicines on the market -- Roche Holding AG's Xenical, which works by limiting fat absorption, and Abbott Laboratories Inc's Meridia/Reductil, which suppresses appetite.

Both can have adverse side effects, however. Xenical can cause excess gas and oily discharge, while Meridia may increase blood pressure. As a result, sales of both drugs are modest, at $460 million and $300 million respectively in 2004.

Side effects for the anticipated Acomplia could also be an issue. While patients on Acomplia have lost around 7 kg (15 lb) in body weight over two years, concerns remain about its potential impact on mood.

By Ben Hirschler, European Pharmaceuticals Correspondent, Yahoo News

Steve - You cannot fault the drug companies for trying. They need to meet the demands of their shareholders and there is A LOT of money to be made in treating obesity.

Let's wade through the morass for a while.

You must ask yourself three questions before choosing this route:

1. Is losing 15 pounds in two years worth it? There is no guarantee that you will lose the weight, a clear risk of side effects, and a considerable out of pocket expense (chances are your insurance company will not pay for obesity treatment).
2. Are you ready to be on the treatment for the rest of your life? That's what the powers that be are pushing for. They will want to prove that along with weight reduction, the medication will prevent every disease imaginable (i.e., pushing statin medication for alzheimer's prevention).
   
3. When you want to go off the pills, what are you going to do?
   

These are serious questions to consider. If you decide to try one of these treatments, don't be a guinea pig! Wait at least 1-2 years after it has been on the market. Remember Vioxx? It took the public over 4 years to find out the damage it caused.

We understand that medication will always be a minute percentage of obesity-reduction therapy, but one still needs to ask the hard questions and be cautious!