Takeda diabetes drug hitting high

The effect of controversial reports on GlaxoSmithKline diabetes drug Avandia has had a positive effect on Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Sales and demand for their diabetes treatment Actos have soared, leading to a three-month share value peak, according to data by Deutsche Bank AG.
Avandia has been cut from many doctor’s prescriptions lists following a New England journal of medicine report by scientists at Wake Forest University . The report indicated that Avandia led to a much higher incidence of heart attack. The Food and Drug Administration put out a warning for diabetics taking the drug and those about to be prescribed.
Actos is a major seller for Takeda, and accounts for around 25 per cent of their revenue per annum. It is the best selling product for the company, who are based in Osaka, Japan. Whether Avandia will recover remains to be see, and Glaxo bosses have expressed their confidence in the drug. Diabetic patients and healthcare teams may be hesitant over its influence on the heart for some time.