Blockbuster Drugs: The Rise and Decine of the Pharmaceutical Industry

238 Pages·2014·2.246 MB·English

by  Jie Jack Li

BLOCKBUSTER DRUGS
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B L O C K B U S T E R
D R U G S
The Rise and Decline of the
Pharmaceutical Industry
JIE JACK   LI

1
1
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[Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Li, Jie Jack, author.
Blockbuster drugs : the rise and decline of the pharmaceutical industry / Jie Jack Li.
p. ; cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Summary: “Th is book uses the cases of several landmark drugs to discuss the history of
the pharmaceutical industry, and discusses what could be next”--Provided by publisher.
ISBN 978–0–19–973768–0 (hardback : alk. paper)
I. Title.
[DNLM: 1. Drug Industry—history—United States. 2. Drug Industry—
trends—United States. 3. Drug Th erapy—history—United States. 4. History,
20th Century—United States. 5. History, 21st Century—United
States. 6. Pharmaceutical Preparations—history—United States. QV 11 AA1]
RS100
338.4’76151—dc23
2013017116
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Printed in the United States of America
on acid-free paper
To Professor Rick L. Danheiser
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Contents

Preface | xi
1. Before the Age of Blockbuster Drugs | 1
2 . B eginning of an Era: Th e First Blockbuster
Drug, Tagamet | 5
§2.1. James Black and the Discovery of Tagamet | 5
§2.2. From a Frog into a Prince | 26
§2.3. Zantac and More “Me-Toos” | 28
§2.4. Lessons | 36
3. More Blockbuster Drugs for Ulcers: Prilosec, Nexium,
and Other Proton-Pump Inhibitors | 41
§3.1. Better Ulcer Drugs Still Needed | 4 1
§3.2. Prilosec | 44
§3.3. Nexium | 57
§3.4. “Me-Too” Proton-Pump Inhibitors | 61
§3.5. Th e Saga Continues—Ulcers Are Caused
by Bacteria! | 63
vii
viii | Contents
4. A ntihistamines as Allergy Drugs | 67
§4.1. What Causes Allergies? | 67
§4.2. Conventional Antihistamines | 70
§4.3. Second-Generation Antihistamines | 79
5. Blood Th inners: From Heparin to Plavix | 87
§5.1. Tales of Two Old Drugs: Heparin and Warfarin | 9 0
§ 5.2. G ood Old Aspirin | 1 05
§5.3. From Ugly Duckling to Beautiful Swan—From
Ticlid to Plavix | 110
§5.4. Blood Feud | 122
§5.5. Beyond Plavix | 129
6. Conquest of Pain: Analgesics: From Morphine
to Lyrica | 136
§6.1. Aspirin and Other NSAIDs | 138
§6.2. Celebrex and COX-2 Inhibitors | 140
§6.3. Morphine and Opiates | 142
§6.4. Fentanyl and Opioids | 146
§6.5. Eff exor and Other Antidepressants | 152
§6.6. Parke-Davis and Dilantin | 153
§6.7. Parke-Davis and Neurontin | 156
§6.8. Silverman and His Th eory on GABA Compounds | 159
§6.9. Parke-Davis and Lyrica | 161
§6.10. Lyrica, the Blockbuster Windfall | 165
§6.11. How Does Lyrica Work, Exactly? | 166
7. Refl ections | 168
§7.1. What Makes a Blockbuster Drug? | 1 68
§7.2. How Do You Sustain Blockbuster Drugs? | 1 69
Contents | ix
§7.3. Th e Rise and Decline of the Pharmaceutical

Industry | 171
appendix: chemical structures of the drugs | 1 75
bibliography | 185
index | 1 99