Below is a list of the most expensive prescription
medicines available from drugstore.com (nasdaq: DSCM - news
- people ), the online pharmaceutical retailer, at yesterday's
prices. Because drugstore.com negotiates discounts and competes
with other retailers on price, these figures will not remain
static. Already, they factor in some level of discount.
And plenty of expensive remedies are not included in this
list. Many cancer drugs, in particular, are sold directly
to hospitals and specialists because they must be injected
intravenously. These are medicines that consumers can actually
buy. And listed below are costs a consumer without any health
insurance would pay.
To look at this snapshot of pharmaceutical
costs is to view a scorecard of the biotechnology industry's
biggest innovations. Most of these drugs, listed at various
dosages, are proteins made using recombinant DNA technology.
They mimic--or exactly duplicate--proteins that are missing
in the bodies of patients. Johnson & Johnson's (nyse:
JNJ - news - people ) Procrit and Amgen's (nasdaq: AMGN
- news - people ) Aranesp spur the body to make oxygen-carrying
red blood cells, warding off anemia. Amgen's Neupogen and
Neulasta pull a similar trick with white blood cells, which
help the body ward off infection. During chemotherapy, white
blood cells can become depleted. Eli Lilly's (nyse: LLY
- news - people ) Humatrope and Serono's (nyse: SRA - news
- people ) Serostim are growth hormones that can be used
to help adults and children whose bodies aren't making enough.
These drugs represent the cornerstone on which the biotechnology
industry had been built over the past 25 years. But discovering
them was expensive, and making them is much more complicated
than making a conventional pill like aspirin.
Also present are Novartis' (nyse: NVS - news
- people ) Gleevec and AstraZeneca's (nyse: AZN - news -
people ) Iressa, two of the first cancer drugs to work by
deliberately targeting specific genes or proteins. The genomics
revolution, if it happens, will not be cheap. One more reason
medical costs, particularly drug costs, are likely to keep
expanding.
Rank |
Drug Name |
Drugmaker |
Use |
Strength |
Quantity |
Price |
1 |
Neupogen |
Amgen (nasdaq: AMGN - news - people ) |
Stimulates the production of white blood cells to help prevent infections related to chemotherapy. |
480 mcg/ml |
1.6 ml vial |
$2,800 |
2 |
Neulasta |
Amgen |
Longer-lasting form of Neupogen; shots are given less often. |
6 mg/0.6 ml solution |
0.6 ml syringe |
2,599 |
3 |
Aranesp |
Amgen |
Treats anemia by stimulating red blood cells. |
150 mcg/0.75 ml solution |
Four vials |
2,556 |
4 |
Tobi |
Chiron (nasdaq: CHIR - news - people ) |
Nebulized antibiotic used to treat bacterial infections in cystic fibrosis |
300 mg/5 ml solution |
112 ampules |
2,530 |
5 |
Lupron Depot |
TAP Pharmaceuticals, a joint venture of Takeda and Abbott (nyse: ABT - news - people ) |
Shuts down testosterone to prevent the spread of prostate cancer. Also used to treat endometriosis and central precocious puberty. |
30 mg |
One box kit |
2,300 |
6 |
Humatrope |
Eli Lilly (nyse: LLY - news - people ) |
Human growth hormone. Improves growth in children, treats adults with problems of the pituitary gland. |
24 mg |
Two cartridges |
2,200 |
7 |
Gleevec |
Novartis (nyse: NVS - news - people ) |
Targeted cancer pill used to treat chronic myelogenous leukemia and gastrointestinal stomach tumors (GIST). |
400 mg |
30 tablets |
2,140 |
8 |
Procrit |
Johnson & Johnson (nyse: JNJ - news - people ) |
Used to treat anemia in cancer, HIV, kidney disease and following surgery. |
40000 u/ml 1 ml vial |
Four vials |
1,858 |
9 |
Neupogen |
Amgen |
Stimulates the production of white blood cells to help prevent infections related to chemotherapy. |
300 mcg/ml |
Ten vials |
1,756 |
10 |
Lupron Depot |
TAP Pharmaceuticals, a joint venture of Takeda and Abbott |
Shuts down testosterone to prevent the spread of prostate cancer. Also used to treat endometriosis and central precocious puberty. |
22.5 mg kit |
One kit |
1,735 |
11 |
Iressa |
AstraZeneca (nyse: AZN - news - people ) |
Used alone to treat lung cancer after other medicines fail. |
250 mg |
30 tablets |
1,709 |
12 |
Aranesp |
Amgen |
Treats anemia by stimulating the growth of red blood cells. |
100 mcg/0.75 ml solution |
Four vials |
1,700 |
13 |
Temodar |
Schering-Plough (nyse: SGP - news - people ) |
Used to treat adults with certain brain tumors that have recurred or progressed. |
250 mg |
Five capsules |
1,700 |
14 |
Humatrope |
Eli Lilly |
Human growth hormone. Improves growth in children, treats adults with problems of the pituitary gland. |
12 mg solution |
Three cartridges |
1,634 |
15 |
Sandostatin |
Novartis |
Used to treat severe diarrhea caused by cancer and to suppress growth hormone. |
0.5 mg/ml |
20 ml |
1,586 |
16 |
Valcyte |
Roche |
Treats severe retinitis that occurs during AIDS infection. |
450 mg |
60 tablets |
1,530 |
17 |
Serostim |
Serono (nyse: SRA - news - people ) |
Used to improve growth in children. Also treats wasting diseases like those that occur with AIDS. |
6 mg solution |
Seven vials |
1,500 |
18 |
Lupron Depot |
TAP Pharmaceuticals, a joint venture of Takeda and Abbott |
Shuts down testosterone to prevent the spread of prostate cancer. Also used to treat endometriosis and central precocious puberty. |
11.25 mg kit |
One box kit |
1,440 |
19 |
Procrit |
Johnson & Johnson |
Used to treat anemia in cancer, HIV, kidney disease, and following surgery. |
20000 u/ml 1 ml vial |
Six vials |
1,400 |
20 |
Humatrope |
Eli Lilly |
Human growth hormone. Improves growth in children, treats adults with problems of the pituitary gland. |
6 mg solution |
Five cartridges |
1,376 |
