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AstraZeneca heart drug hits goal in major clinical trial

A sign is seen at an AstraZeneca site in Macclesfield, central England May 19, 2014. REUTERS/Phil Noble

By Ben Hirschler

LONDON (Reuters) - AstraZeneca's blood-thinning drug Brilinta cut the risk of death or heart attack in patients with a history of previous attacks, according to a major clinical trial that will boost hopes for the product.

Using Brilinta in this patient population could more than double the number of people eligible for the medicine, which the company has predicted could eventually generate sales of $3.5 billion (2 billion pounds) a year.

Results from the keenly awaited 21,000-patient study, known as PEGASUS, were released on Wednesday. Shares in AstraZeneca rose 1.5 percent in a weaker London market following the news.

The trial, which studied subjects who had a heart attack within the past one to three years, was designed to prove Brilinta's value beyond its current approved use in patients with acute coronary syndromes.

Brilinta has struggled so far to gain traction in a competitive market for blood thinners, where Plavix -- developed by Sanofi and Bristol-Myers Squibb -- is now available as a cheap generic.

But AstraZeneca Chief Executive Pascal Soriot has made it a top priority and the company flagged Brilinta's potential when it fought off a $118 billion bid by Pfizer last year, forecasting annual sales of $3.5 billion for the drug by 2023.

Reaching that revenue goal is a tall order, since sales in the first nine months of 2014 were just $343 million, and analysts believe Brilinta will only get there if the medicine works in a variety new settings.

AstraZeneca said results from the PEGASUS trial were positive for both the 60 mg and 90 mg doses of the drug and preliminary analysis did not reveal any unexpected safety issues.

Complete results from the study will be submitted to a scientific meeting in 2015.

(Reporting by Ben Hirschler; Editing by Louise Heavens and Mark Potter)