Eli Lilly puts new Cialis on the market
Valor Econômico 09/08/10
The American pharmaceutical Eli Lilly will put on the national market as of the 15th of this month, the Cialis for daily use, a drug indicated to fight erectile dysfunction. The product will be sold in packs with 28 5-mg pills (the same presentation of contraceptives) and it will cost between R$ 230 (US$ 131) and R$ 250 (US$ 143) a box. Luciano Finardi, Marketing Officer of the company, said Lilly doesn't want to get into the "price war" fought since the end of the first half, when the product of Pfizer, Viagra, the famous blue pill, lost its patent, causing a race among the laboratories to launch the generic version of the pill.The national laboratory EMS started ahead in the dispute and Pfizer counter-attacked, closing a partnership with Eurofarma to produce and sell the generic drug of its own brand product. According to Finardi, Lilly received the approval of Anvisa (National Health Surveillance Agency) in the beginning of the year to launch the daily use version of Cialis in the country. In the past months, the pharmaceutical company worked closely with doctors and retail chains for the distribution of the medicine. Cialis is approved for the treatment of erectile dysfunction in more than 100 countries. The daily pill on its turn, also sold upon prescription, is present in 20 countries, among them the United States, Australia, South Africa and many countries of Europe. The product will also be launched in Chile and Mexico this month.
The indication is that the patient takes one pill a day, preferably at the same time. You don't have to take a break between one pack and another, explained Finardi. Studies made by Lilly, according to the company, show the side effects resulting from Cialis for daily use (light yellow) and those caused by the drug that is taken sporadically (yellow in the shape of a drop) are practically the same, such as headache, backache, and indigestion for example. Nevertheless, the adverse reactions are temporary and they are usually mild or moderate. "Those effects, nevertheless, were only observed in 2% of the population surveyed", said the Executive.
Even though it is less known than its main competitor (Pfizer Viagra), Cialis is the market leader in the country. The product of occasional use is sold at R$ 28 (US$ 16) a unit. Each pack of Cialis comes with two pills. According to Finardi, the distinct feature of the product is its efficacy: 36 hours, compared to the four to six hours guaranteed by Viagra and its generics. On average, the laboratory EMS sells each generic pill for R$ 10 (US$ 5.7), in packs with one, two, four or eight pills. Pfizer also sells the medication per unit, for R$ 15 (US$ 8.6).