Wow! The Lancet has laid down the gauntlet. The statin wars: why AstraZeneca must retreat The editorial ends:

Since there are no reliable data about efficacy and safety–and AstraZeneca is facing unusually acute commercial pressure to force rosuvastatin into the market–doctors should pause before prescribing this drug. Physicians must tell their patients the truth about rosuvastatin–that, compared with its competitors, rosuvastatin has an inferior evidence base supporting its safe use. AstraZeneca has pushed its marketing machine too hard and too fast. It is time for McKillop to desist from this unprincipled campaign.

And Astra-Zeneca responds: (warning, pdf file) The response.

The BBC news has this article on the subject: AstraZeneca defends its new bestseller

According to the magazine, AstraZeneca needs to eat into this market to recover from falling profits and flat sales of its ulcer pill Prilosec which is facing stiff competition from generic drugs.

When The Lancet’s editorial was written, AstraZeneca’s latest financial figures had been disappointing, its profits falling fast.

But on Thursday this week the drugs firm reported a reversal of its fortunes with a rise in pretax profits to $1.11bn, up from $923m during the same period earlier.

The recently launched Crestor was a major contributor to this rise, having already gained a 2% market share, and analysts expect the drug to bring in $3bn worth of sales a year.

I doubt that this story will surprise anyone. The pharmaceutical industry functions to make money for investors. Often this goal aligns with improving patient care. Sometimes the industry just looks for market share, and patient care effects are neutral. This controversy most likely reflects a drug with no major advantage for patients, but a major financial advantage for Astra-Zeneca. They have every right to market their drug. They should not complain too loudly when the are criticized. “The lady doth protest too much, methinks” – Shakespeare, Hamlet