PCSK9 Drug Reduces Heart Disease Risk

A cholesterol-lowering drug significantly cut the risk of heart attack and stroke in a recent study. But is it worth the steep cost?

Written byDiana Kwon

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Cholesterol buildup in an interlobular arteryFLICKR, BOONYARIT CHEUNSUCHON

An expensive new drug, evolocumab (Repatha), developed by Amgen, significantly drops cholesterol levels and reduced the risk of major cardiovascular events, researchers reported in a study published last week (March 17) in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Evolocumab is a monoclonal antibody that attempts to mimic a mutation in the PCSK9 gene, which can lower the risk of developing heart disease by up to 88 percent. A 2014 placebo-controlled study of 901 patients revealed the evolocumab could reduce low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels by around 60 percent. Clinical trials of alirocumab (Praleunt), a competitor drug developed by Sanofi and Regeneron, have revealed similar effects.

The latest study of evolocumab—a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial involving more than 27,000 patients—revealed that after two years of treatment, ...

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Meet the Author

Diana Kwon
Diana is a freelance science journalist who covers the life sciences, health, and academic life. She’s a regular contributor to The Scientist and her work has appeared in several other publications, including Scientific American, Knowable, and Quanta. Diana was a former intern at The Scientist and she holds a master’s degree in neuroscience from McGill University. She’s currently based in Berlin, Germany.
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