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VESALIUS-REAL Study Reveals Critical Gaps in Cardiovascular Care Despite Available Treatments

2 months ago

The VESALIUS-REAL study of 278,000 high-risk patients found 70% did not receive lipid-lowering therapy after heart attacks or strokes, and 88% had no treatment intensification within a year.
Half of cardiovascular event patients never received follow-up LDL-C testing, and among those tested, 82% failed to achieve guideline-recommended cholesterol goals despite available treatments.
Amgen is working to address these care gaps through initiatives including free LDL-C testing at CVS MinuteClinics, partnerships with cardiology organizations, and the LATTICE Consortium to accelerate implementation science.

2 months ago

A federal jury awarded Regeneron $407 million in damages after finding Amgen violated antitrust laws by using cross-therapeutic bundled rebates to block Praluent from competing with Repatha in the PCSK9 inhibitor market.
The verdict includes $135.6 million in compensatory damages and $271.2 million in punitive damages, signaling a strong deterrent against anticompetitive bundling practices in pharmaceutical markets.
Amgen was found to have leveraged its blockbuster drugs Enbrel and Otezla to force pharmacy benefit managers to exclude Praluent, creating an uneven playing field not based on clinical merit or price.

2 months ago

A landmark study of over 273,000 individuals with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease found that every increase in lipoprotein(a) levels is associated with higher risk of recurrent cardiovascular events.
Patients with very high Lp(a) levels (≥300 nmol/L) faced a 45% increased risk of subsequent cardiovascular events compared to those with low levels (<15 nmol/L), with slightly higher risks observed in Hispanic and Black individuals.
High-impact LDL cholesterol-lowering therapies, particularly PCSK9 inhibitors, may help mitigate the harmful effects of elevated Lp(a) levels, suggesting important treatment implications for high-risk patients.