Merck's Januvia Gains Ground in Second-Line Patient Share at the Expense of Takeda's Actos

Merck's Januvia Gains Ground in Second-Line Patient Share at the Expense of
Takeda's Actos
A Higher Percentage of Januvia-Treated Patients Than Actos-Treated Patients
Stay Within the Brand Franchise When Progressing from the First Line,
According to a New Report from Decision Resources

WALTHAM, Mass., Oct. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Decision Resources, one of the world's
leading research and advisory firms focusing on pharmaceutical and healthcare
issues, finds that Merck's Januvia has become a popular second-line agent for
the treatment of type 2 diabetes at the expense of Takeda's Actos. In fact,
Januvia's increase in second-line patient share versus the 2008 analysis of
claims data is among the highest in the analysis. Although Januvia does not
have the glucose-lowering ability of some of its competitors, surveyed
physicians highly value Januvia's benign side-effect profile.

The only agent to surpass Januvia's growth in the second line year over year
is Merck's fixed dose combination of Januvia and metformin, Janumet. The new
Treatment Algorithms in Type 2 Diabetes report finds that a higher percentage
of Januvia-treated patients (17.6 percent) than Actos-treated patients (7.4
percent) stay within the brand franchise when progressing from the first line.
Although patient share for Janumet is equivalent to Takeda's Actoplus Met (the
fixed dose combination of Actos and metformin) in first-line therapy, Janumet
consistently trumps Actoplus Met in second- and third-line patient share in
newly diagnosed patients.

"Part of the reason for Janumet's great performance in second-line treatment
is that more patients move to the drug after metformin, metformin ER or a
sulfonylurea than go to Actoplus Met. This finding is especially interesting
because Janumet launched in April 2007, only two months before we started
collecting data on the treatment patterns in newly diagnosed patients," stated
Madhuri Borde, Ph.D., product director at Decision Resources.

By combining patient-level claims data with physician survey data, this report
can be used to build patient-flow models and analyze the assumptions driving
these models.

Patient-level claims data show that between 30 to 40 percent of patients who
start Actos, Januvia or Amylin/Eli Lilly's Byetta receive the drugs in the
second line. However, less than 25 percent of patients prescribed the leading
first-line agent, metformin, move to a second-line drug within a year,
emphasizing the limited pool of newly diagnosed patients available for
starting branded drugs as a second-line therapy.

About Treatment Algorithm Insight Series
Decision Resources combines in-depth primary research with the most extensive
claims-based longitudinal patient-level data from IMS Lifelink: Health Plans
Claims database to provide exceptional insight into physicians' prescribing
trends and the factors that drive therapy product choice, from diagnosis
through multiple courses of treatment, for a specific disease.

About Decision Resources
Decision Resources (www.DecisionResources.com) is a world leader in market
research publications, advisory services and consulting designed to help
clients shape strategy, allocate resources and master their chosen markets.
Decision Resources is a Decision Resources, Inc. company.

About Decision Resources, Inc.
Decision Resources, Inc. is a cohesive portfolio of companies that offers
best-in-class, high-value information and insights on important sectors of the
healthcare industry. Clients rely on this analysis and data to make informed
decisions. Please visit Decision Resources, Inc. at
www.DecisionResourcesInc.com.

All company, brand or product names contained in this document may be
trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

For more information, contact:

Gisselle Morales Elizabeth Marshall
Decision Resources Decision Resources, Inc.
781-296-2691 781-296-2563
gmorales@dresources.com emarshall@dresources.com

SOURCE Decision Resources

Gisselle Morales of Decision Resources, +1-781-296-2691,
gmorales@dresources.com, or Elizabeth Marshall of Decision Resources, Inc.,
+1-781-296-2563, emarshall@dresources.com