Munich, August 31, 2008 - Taking a simple once-daily capsule of fish oil improves survival prospects for patients with heart failure, results of a major clinical study showed on Sunday.
The positive finding boosts the health-giving reputation of fish oil and is particularly encouraging because heart failure -- a chronic condition in which the heart struggles to pump blood effectively -- is notoriously difficult to treat.
It is a major plus for Norway's Pronova BioPharma, which makes the medicine used in the test, although doctors said cheap over-the-counter products should work just as well.
Pronova is a world leader in producing pharmaceuticals from fish oil, a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids.
The news also vindicates GlaxoSmithKline's decision to snap up U.S. rights to Pronova's product Lovaza last November, by acquiring Reliant Pharmaceuticals for $1.65 billion.
Omega-3 fatty acids have in the past been linked to a range of health benefits, including reducing the risk of heart attacks, strokes, Alzheimer's disease and depression.
Luigi Tavazzi of the ANMCO Research Centre in Florence, Italy, told the European Society of Cardiology annual meeting that patients on Lovaza, followed up for an average 3.9 years, were 9 percent less likely to die than those given a placebo, or dummy capsule.
They were also less likely to be admitted to hospital with cardiovascular problems.
Patients on active treatment received a daily Lovaza capsule containing 1 gram of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids.
NEW GUIDELINES?
Of the 7,000 people tracked in the study, 955 patients in the Lovaza group died, compared with 1,014 in the placebo group.
That difference may be modest but Jose Ramon Gonzalez Juanatey, a cardiologist at Santiago University Hospital in Spain, who was not involved in the test, said it was clinically meaningful, since the patients were already receiving the best available treatment, leaving little room for improvement.
"This is important because heart failure is a major public health problem. Even in well-treated patients, the mortality rate is 10 percent a year, so new therapies and strategies are needed," he said.
Current European and U.S. treatment guidelines focus on the role of omega-3 in preventing heart disease but Juanatey said wider guidance to include treating heart failure could be warranted.
The findings should also be taken as a message to the public to eat more fish to keep their hearts healthy, Juanatey said.
Robert Bonow, a cardiologist at Northwestern University in Chicago, said fish oil capsules were cheap, well-tolerated and did not interfere with other medications, making them an attractive option, even if the benefits were moderate.
"I think it makes sense for doctors and their patients to consider using them," he said.
Omega-3 is thought to help by stabilising the electrical signals of the heart, as well as reducing blood fat levels.
Industry analysts said the latest results should fuel sales growth of Lovaza, also known as Omacor, which is the only EU and U.S.-approved omega-3 prescription drug.
Lovaza contributed a modest 67 million pounds ($123 million) to Glaxo's sales in the second quarter but is tipped by some analysts as a potential 500 million-pounds-a-year seller within two years.
The findings from the so-called GISSI-HF study were also published online by the Lancet medical journal.