Barron's: new drugs could help industry sales, shares

NEW YORK Jan 31 (Reuters) - New drugs like Amgen Inc's (AMGN.O) osteoporosis injection Prolia could win regulatory approval this year, helping the industry's sales as well as share prices, financial weekly Barron's said.

Barron's, in its Feb. 1 edition, listed prostate cancer drug Provenge by Dendreon Corp (DNDN.O) and blood thinner Xarelto, which Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N) and Bayer (BAYGn.DE) plan to jointly market, as possible drugs that could be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration this year.

It also cited Jefferies & Co's estimate that sales of Qnexa, the obesity treatment developed by Vivus Inc (VVUS.O), could reach $1.16 billion by 2015 if it wins FDA approval.

The report noted a jump in Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO) shares after its injectable diabetes drug Victoza received FDA approval last Monday.

(Editing by Martin Golan)