Avastin vs Lucentis for age-related wet macular degeneration
I've raved about Genentech here quite a lot in the last month. I like what they're doing therapeutically with their targeted biologic treatments and from a business point of view as well. I think they're an interesting company, but this time I think they're digging themselves a karmic hole with what's been going on in terms of Avastin and the chemically-similar Lucentis.
Yesterday, Genentech won approval for Lucentis, a drug that is used to treat age-related wet macular degeneration, a condition once considered incurable. This in and of itself is great news. Ironically, the biggest competitor to Lucentis will be Genentech's own Avastin. This creates a conflict of interest for Genentech:
While no rigorous studies prove Avastin's effectiveness or safety in eye treatment, the doctors claim it can improve vision in some patients.
Now that Lucentis has been approved, Avastin may retain some share of the market because it costs a fraction of the price Genentech has set for Lucentis. That price per dose will be $1,950, company officials said Friday. Doses of Avastin are available to doctors at $50 or less from compounding pharmacies that divide up vials of the cancer drug into the much smaller amounts needed for eye treatment.
(Emphasis mine.) Uh… that's a HUGE price difference. While I'm all for privatized medicine, I am not a fan of price gouging simply because one can get away with it.
Of course, one prefers a drug that has been proven to work for a specific condition, ceteris paribus, but when there's such a massive price differential for potentially only marginal returns on the extra financial investment, it does tend to skew priorities. I would certainly think twice about opting for Lucentis over Avastin if the difference was coming out of my pocket.
I think Genentech needs to re-think their pricing on this one. $1,900 is a lot of money, relatively speaking. On the other hand, $500 is not so much. I think Genentech would make up in volume what they'd lose in profit-per-dose if they lowered the price to something more reasonable, like that $500/shot. (Disclaimer: I just pulled that figure out of my posterior.)
I'd love to see the projected revenue models for this one, and to hear the reasoning behind the differential. Even if the reasoning is sound (I have my doubts, if for no other reason than goodwill doesn't translate well into dollars and cents), patients and prescribers might reject it out of hand simply because the disconnect is so huge.
What do you all think?
[tags]Medicine, pharmacy, genentech, avastin, lucentis, price gouging, biotech, big pharma, economics[/tags]
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[...] One of my more popular entries by search engine traffic has been my Avastin v Lucentis post. Well Lucentis is back in the news: The U.S. government is considering an unusual study that pits two Genentech Inc. drugs against the same disease, jeopardizing almost $1 billion in estimated annual sales for the world's second-largest biotechnology company. [...]
Pingback by Avastin to be tested against Lucentis in new government study :: OnThePharm — July 16, 2006 @ 10:39 am
My husband recently had the avastin shot in his eye to treat macular degeneration, as well as rubiosis. It was a last resort, as he is just 48 years old. Yes, I said Avastin, NOT lucentis, and it seems to be improving his once non existant vision. Price Gouging is exactly what it seems to be, and we have gone into this with our eyes WIDE open.
Comment by lucille hicks — January 14, 2007 @ 9:57 am
I was talking to a friend of mine who is a compounding pharmacist, who makes Avastin to ARWMD, and he said that Lucentis doesn't really work, and that Avastin is far superior.
Interesting anecdote.
Comment by RJS — January 16, 2007 @ 9:45 am
Can you tell me which is better for my 69yr old mother who is going to be treated for Neovascular Glaucoma? Lucentis or Avastin.
Comment by Dr.B.Dinesh Baliga — July 9, 2008 @ 3:00 am
My mother had experienced wet macular degeneration and was told in April 2007 that the only available drug to her at that time in Canada was Avastin. Without the Government paying for this treatment, it had a potential to bankrupt her, but friends, family and may strangers came together to raise the funds necessary. Her last check-up was just days ago (July 2008) and the doctor has indicated that her wet AMD has halted, and she's getting new glasses because of her improved vision.
Advocate for this drug from all sources! Seeing is a right!!!
Barry Wheeler
Age Related Macular Degeneration Support
http://www.amdsupport.ca
Comment by Barry Wheeler — July 29, 2008 @ 12:48 pm