Internal e-mails and other documents from Merck & Co. show the company fought for years to keep safety concerns from undermining the drug’s commercial prospects, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday. Vioxx, a drug known as a COX-2 inhibitor, was withdrawn from the market after it was shown to double the risk of heart attack and stroke in patients who had been taking it for at least 18 months. Vioxx generated some $2.5 billion in annual sales, and its withdrawal pummeled Merck’s shares. On Monday, the Journal reported that an e-mail dated March 9, 2000, suggested Merck recognized that something in Vioxx was linked to increased heart risk.
