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hello all i thought the 'angle' on this press release was interesting it's sometimes difficult to remember that what is of deep personal concern to us is 'just business' to some others janet > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > First new Parkinson's drug in eight years approved > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Copyright ) 1997 Nando.net > Copyright ) 1997 Reuter Information Service > > KALAMAZOO, Mich. (July 2, 1997 6:08 p.m. EDT) - The first new treament > of Parkinson's disease since 1989 was cleared Wednesday for sale in > the United States. > > Parkinson's is a debilitating tremor disorder often affecting the > elderly. > > The Food and Drug Administration approved Mirapex, a dopamine agonist > made by Swedish-American Pharmacia & Upjohn Inc., the company said. > > Mirapex was shown in clinical trials to be useful in treating patients > who have idiopathic Parkinson's disease in early and advanced stages, > Pharmacia & Upjohn said. > > "Mirapex will provide another option for Parkinson's patients to > improve their daily living functions," said Mark Corrigan, a Pharmacia > & Upjohn vice president. > > "Mirapex can be used with other Parkinson's medications," including > levodopa, the most commonly used therapy for advanced Parkinson's, > Corrigan said. > > Side-effects, such as nausea, dizziness, drowsiness or hallucinations, > may affect some people taking the drug, the firm said. > > Such side-effects are typical for Parkinson's medications. > "Unfortunately, that's true," said Hemant Shah, an independent drug > industry analyst. "This is not a cure for Parkinson's. Basically it > relieves the symptoms." > > The annual sales potential for Mirapex is estimated to be $100 million > to $150 million, Wall Street analysts said. > > Pharmacia & Upjohn had 1996 net sales of $7.18 billion. > > "This is not a surprise and it's not a large product for them," said > Oppenheimer & Co drug industry analyst Steven Gerber in New York. > > Pharmacia & Upjohn and marketing partner Boehringer Ingelheim > Pharmaceuticals Inc., the U.S. unit of a German group of companies, > plan to begin distributing Mirapex to U.S. pharmacies by July 10. > > http://www.nando.net/newsroom/ntn/health/070297/health38_27720.html [log in to unmask]