Shares of Amgen and Johnson & Johnson took a hit Wednesday after a study showed their anti-anemia drugs increase the risk of blood clots and death in cancer patients. But the companies say it’s old news, CNN News rerpots.
The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found patients using drugs that are considered erythropoiesis-stimulating agents, or ESAs, increase their risk of death by 10%. They also increase by 57% the risk of developing deep vein thrombosis, or blood clots in the leg and lungs, the study said.
Amgen’s Aranesp and Epogen and Johnson & Johnson’s (JNJ, Fortune 500) Procrit are ESAs. They’re typically used with chemotherapy to ward off blood-cell reduction associated with chemo.
Amgen’s stock price dropped 2% in afternoon trading, while Johnson & Johnson dipped about 1%.
Dr. Charles Bennett of the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago led the study, which compiled and examined data from 51 prior studies in more than 13,000 patients.
This is not the first time problems have arisen for the ESA class. Bret Holley, a drug analyst for Oppenheimer & Co., dismissed the JAMA report as “old news,” despite its apparent impact on company stocks.
