Study: Procrit cheaper than rival anemia drugs

USA-based Ortho Biotech Products, a Johnson & Johnson company, says that the results of a large retrospective analysis suggest that Procrit (epoetin alfa), its treatment for chemotherapy-induced anemia, had a lower cost in an in-patient hospital setting than darbepoetin alfa, the active component of Amgen's Aranesp.

The study, which was based on the average cumulative, administered-doses per patient hopitalization and the wholesale acquisition cost, included data from 92,467 patients from 500 hospitals across the USA. Those included were hospitalized for cancer or chronic kidney disease between July 2002 and March 2005. Records were excluded if the patient had received dialysis for either condition, or had been treated with both medications.

The results showed that the calculated drug cost for darbopoetin alfa was almost 50% higher than that of Procrit. The firm added that the average cumulative doses administered per i-patient stay for cancer sufferers were 62,060 units for Procrit and 253.4mcg for darbepoetin alfa, resulting in a dose-only ratio between the two agents of 245:1. For those with chronic kidney disease, the figures were 39,385 Units of Procit and 162.7mcg for darbepoetin alfa, with a dose-only ratio of 242:1.