Drug giants unveil new rival to Viagra
Monday, January 11th, 2010VIAGRA, the blue pill that has transformed the treatment of impotence, faces a fresh challenge in Europe after regulators approved a new rival made by GlaxoSmithKline and Germany’s Bayer.
GSK, the world’s second-biggest drugmaker, and its partner, Bayer, will launch Levitra, a round, orange pill to treat erectile dysfunction, in Germany on 17 March, and plans a quick roll-out in other European countries.
Industry sources said the
drug will go on sale in the UK next week.
Levitra will be the second drug in Europe to challenge Viagra, which has made billions for Pfizer, the world’s biggest drugmaker, since its debut five years ago. US firms Eli Lilly and Icos introduced Cialis, a new drug, in Britain, Germany and Australia in February.
Analysts estimate that about 30 million men are affected by impotence in Europe and that, despite Viagra’s success, only about 15-20 per cent of the world’s 150 million sufferers are currently being treated.
Paul Diggle, an industry analyst at German bank WestLB Panmure, said Viagra sales had peaked at a lower level than many analysts had expected, and there was plenty of scope for Levitra and Cialis to become blockbuster medicines.
“It tends to help when there’s a second and third product in a market like this, because it does add a bit of medical respectability to it as far as doctors are concerned,” he said.
Bayer, which developed Levitra, hopes to generate annual peak sales of over one billion euros for the drug, which is also known as Vardenafil.
“This is an important step for our pharmaceuticals business, as we believe that Levitra has the potential to become a new blockbuster,” Bayer chief executive Werner Wenning said.
Levitra is one of the few bright spots in Bayer’s pharmaceutical division, which has been brought low by the forced recall of cholesterol-fighter Baycol, which analysts fear could leave the company open to billions of dollar of legal claims.
Levitra will follow Bayer’s launch of Cipro XR for the treatment of uncomplicated urinary tract infections in the US earlier this year and is expected to be followed by hypertension drug Kinzal in five European countries.





