UPDATE: FDA Approves New Medicine BRILINTA For Use in the US

AstraZeneca AZN announced today that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved BRILINTA™ (ticagrelor) tablets to reduce the rate of heart attack (myocardial infarction and cardiovascular death in adult patients with acute coronary syndrome, compared to clopidogrel. BRILINTA, a new oral antiplatelet medicine, is indicated to reduce the rate of thrombotic cardiovascular events in patients with ACS (unstable angina [UA] non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction [NSTEMI], or ST-elevation myocardial infarction [STEMI]). BRILINTA has been shown to reduce the rate of a combined endpoint of CV death, MI or stroke compared to clopidogrel. The difference between treatments was driven by CV death and MI with no difference in stroke. In patients treated with an artery-opening procedure known as percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), BRILINTA reduces the rate of stent thrombosis. BRILINTA has been studied in ACS in combination with aspirin. Maintenance doses of aspirin above 100 mg decreased the effectiveness of BRILINTA. Avoid maintenance doses of aspirin above 100 mg daily. David Brennan, Chief Executive Officer, AstraZeneca said: “The FDA approval of BRILINTA is good news for patients in the United States and represents a significant milestone as we seek to help ensure ACS patients around the world have access to this innovative medicine. With over one million people affected by ACS in the US each year, the fact that physicians have a new and more effective treatment option than clopidogrel to help reduce the rate of heart attack and cardiovascular death in these patients is an important advance.” Now that BRILINTA is approved in the US, AstraZeneca will begin the process of working with hospital formularies, protocol committees, government and managed care reimbursement bodies to bring this medicine to patients. Navigating these steps, which are necessary before BRILINTA will be available to a substantial number of incident ACS patients, will be a key focus for the next 12 months.