The latest Celebrex ad is hilarious

Chairman, I found the commercial pretty funny too. I have a pretty good idea why its written that way.

Celebrex and Vioxx are both non steroidal cox 2 inhibitors that have been fighting for mkt share for a while now. Both have been linked to heart attacks but only vioxx was taken off the market and hit by thousands of lawsuits.

The documents show that the makers of vioxx have known for some time it causes heart attacks and strokes. They suppressed that info for a while because vioxx was a huge moneymaker. Its now off the mkt and vioxx has entered into a 5 billion dollar settlement to wipe out most of the cases. Part of the problem for Vioxx in the lawsuits was they failed to adequately warn. Even beneficial drugs have side effects and you might be willing to knowing risk taking them if the benefit outweighs the risk.

Vioxx got taken off the mkt, celebrex never did. Celebrex is defending a lot of suits but not nearly so many as vioxx. Some studies suggest it is not as risky as vioxx even though its in the same class of drugs.

The commercials seem designed to defeat future lawsuits. The makers of celebrex can point to their labeling and commercials to show users have been fair warned about the risks and must consult with their doctors to see if the risk is appropriate for them. Those with heart problems and arthritis probably shouldnt take celebrex.

The commercials are still remarkable in that its the farthest I have seen a pharmaceutical company go the emphasize the dangerous side effects of using the drug. I think thats actually a good effect of the litigation. Vioxx killed a lot of people and has been linked to thousands of strokes and heart attacks. It might have been a good drug for some, but clearly not for people at risk for heart attacks and strokes.