Amgen Drugs May Boost Survival During a Nuclear Attack

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Amgen Inc. (AMGN)’s Neulasta and Neupogen and a similar blood-boosting drug from Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (TEVA) may help people survive after a nuclear attack, U.S. regulators said. Medications known as leukocyte growth factors, which also include Sanofi (SAN)’s Leukine, may help decrease death rates from radiation exposure, Food and Drug Administration staff said today in a report. FDA staff reviewed a National Institutes of Health study on monkeys exposed to radiation that were given Neupogen. Agency advisers plan to meet May 3 to discuss whether the animal study is sufficient to approve the use for humans.This is the first time an FDA advisory committee will consider a medical countermeasure for use in a radiological or nuclear incident, the staff said. Neulasta, Amgen’s second best- selling drug, and Neupogen together generated about $5.4 billion in sales last year for the Thousand Oaks, California-based company, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

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