March 2008
A Lipitor ad deconstructed
The ad at right, which we found on the Washington Post's Web site, implies that people who choose a generic statin drug over
Lipitor aren't getting the best treatment.
"Not all cholesterol-lowering medications are the same."
Sets the stage for the argument that Lipitor is superior to competitors.
"Did you know there is no generic form of Lipitor?"
When its patent expires in 2010, Lipitor, too, will become available generically, just as other statin drugs have.
"And in clinical studies, Lipitor lowered bad cholesterol significantly more than generic Zocor and Pravachol."
It's true that patients can achieve larger cholesterol reductions, on average, with Lipitor than with some other statins. But only patients in the highest-risk group--those who have had a heart attack or acute coronary syndrome in addition to high LDL (bad) cholesterol--need it. Most patients could do just as well on a cheaper drug. For example, atorvastatin can reduce LDL cholesterol by 34 to 54 percent. Simvastatin reduces it by 26 to 50 percent; pravastatin (the generic form of Pravachol), by 18 to 37 percent.
"'I trust my own heart to Lipitor.'--Dr. Robert Jarvik, Inventor of the Jarvik Artificial Heart and Lipitor patient."
Viewers might assume that a doctor appearing in a cholesterol-drug ad is a cardiologist. Jarvik has a medical degree, but he does not practice medicine.
"Not all cholesterol-lowering medications are the same."
Sets the stage for the argument that Lipitor is superior to competitors.
"Did you know there is no generic form of Lipitor?"
When its patent expires in 2010, Lipitor, too, will become available generically, just as other statin drugs have.
"And in clinical studies, Lipitor lowered bad cholesterol significantly more than generic Zocor and Pravachol."
It's true that patients can achieve larger cholesterol reductions, on average, with Lipitor than with some other statins. But only patients in the highest-risk group--those who have had a heart attack or acute coronary syndrome in addition to high LDL (bad) cholesterol--need it. Most patients could do just as well on a cheaper drug. For example, atorvastatin can reduce LDL cholesterol by 34 to 54 percent. Simvastatin reduces it by 26 to 50 percent; pravastatin (the generic form of Pravachol), by 18 to 37 percent.
"'I trust my own heart to Lipitor.'--Dr. Robert Jarvik, Inventor of the Jarvik Artificial Heart and Lipitor patient."
Viewers might assume that a doctor appearing in a cholesterol-drug ad is a cardiologist. Jarvik has a medical degree, but he does not practice medicine.
