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Glaxo CEO Worried in Email Over Heart Attacks From Avandia -- in 1999

By Jim Edwards

Updated on: July 13, 2010 / 4:41 PM EDT / MoneyWatch

SEE ALSO: Glaxo's Dirty Laundry on Troubled Diabetes Drug Avandia: A Rogue's Gallery of Images

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)'s decision to settle most of the litigation over its Avandia diabetes drug for $460 million means that former CEO Jean-Pierre Garnier will never testify about why he sent an email in 1999 raising concerns that his diabetes drug had "a high number of CV [cardiovascular] deaths while other glitazones [similar drugs] did not." Avandia had only been on the market for one month at the time the email was sent, according to a deposition transcript in which the email was read aloud.

The email is one reason why GSK decided today -- 11 years after Garnier raised the issue with his staff -- to settle about 10,000 cases for $46,000 apiece. The FDA is reviewing the drug's record for heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems; it will probably be withdrawn from the market or the terms of its use will be severely restricted.

The Garnier email was described in deposition testimony by Dr. Rosemary Johann-Liang, a former FDA medical reviewer who left the agency after she clashed with her bosses over whether Avandia should carry stricter warnings for heart problems. According to the lawyers interrogating her, Garnier's email asked GSK executive Dr. Martin I. Freed -- a man who wanted to make sure bad data about Avandia did "not see the light of day" -- why he was being pestered by Wall Street analysts over Avandia's side effects. "Is this not connected to the cardiovascular deaths?" Garnier (pictured) wrote:

Johann-Liang testified that she did not know about Garnier's letter. Garnier is currently CEO of the Pierre Fabre pharma and cosmetics company, and a board member of United Technologies.

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Hat tip to Pharmalot.

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