Repatha

Lowering Cholesterol with Repatha:

Back in 2015, the FDA approved evolocumab (Repatha) based on the drug’s ability to lower so-called bad LDL cholesterol dramatically. It is intended as a treatment for people with hereditary high cholesterol. One condition of approval was that the manufacturer, Amgen, would conduct a clinical trial to find out whether people would also be less likely to die of heart attacks or strokes.

What the Scientists Did:

The results of that trial, FOURIER, have recently been published in The New England Journal of Medicine (online March 17, 2017).  (If you were wondering, FOURIER stands for Further cardiovascular OUtcomes Research with PCSK9 Inhibition in subjects with Elevated Risk.)

This randomized trial included 27,564 people at high risk of heart disease. The majority had already suffered at least one heart attack.

Half received high-intensity cholesterol-lowering treatment with a statin and in some cases ezetimibe (Zetia). In addition, they got placebo injections.

The other half received the same aggressive cholesterol-lowering treatment but their injections contained Repatha. After 48 weeks their LDL cholesterol had dropped to unprecedented low levels (the average was 30 but some patients had LDL levels even lower). After two years, heart attacks, strokes and the need for stents were reduced between 21 and 27 percent.

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