The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) already approved the use of the latest heart failure drug from Novartis. The drug, known as Entresto, was found to be potent in reducing death and hospitalizations related to cardiovascular diseases.
Entresto became the talk of the medical community following the success of Novartis' clinical trial which involved 8,000 adults who took the medication. Results manifested a 20 percent drop on the chances of suffering from cardiovascular failure and heart failure.
"Treatment can help people with heart failure live longer and enjoy more active lives," Norman Stockbridge, FDA's director of the Division of Cardiovascular and Renal Products, said in a statement.
Clyde Yancy, chief of cardiology at Chicago's Northwestern Memorial Hospital, praised Entresto for benefits it has to offer, saying that the drug is "one of the few times that we have identified a medication that is better than the standard. It's clearly superior to what we have."
Dr. Yancy, who is not working for the drug maker, projected that there around six million people in the U.S. alone who are suffering from heart failure. He also mentioned that "at least half may be candidates" for the medicine that could "fundamentally change their lives for the better."
A research published in 2014 on the New England Journal of Medicine already reported Entresto's potency in reducing a person's risk of death and hospitalization due heart failure compared to the generic drug, enalapril.
"Despite the uncertainty and high financial risk we designed the world's largest heart failure trial to compare Entresto to the previous gold standard," David Epstein, division head of Novartis Pharmaceuticals, said in the company statement. Epstein further highlighted of the "greater opportunity" that Entresto offers to individuals "to live longer and stay out of hospital."
According to Novartis, it would cost a person $12.50 a day ($4,500), for two tablets.
