Consumer

As GSK jettisons consumer brands, smaller marketer sees boon

Marc Iskowitz December 28, 2011

GlaxoSmithKline divested North American OTC drugs worth about $200 million in sales, a portfolio that seemed like a good strategic fit for buyer Prestige Brands Holdings.

Advil Congestion effort ties traffic gridlock to cold and flu misery

Matthew Arnold December 13, 2011

Don't tell the New York Post, but Pfizer is boosting bike lanes as part of an Advil promotion.

Branded Benlysta DTC campaign ready to roll out

Marc Iskowitz October 26, 2011

New online and print DTC advertising targeting US patients with lupus will appear "within weeks," said executives from Human Genome Sciences. Can the campaign revive blockbuster fortunes for Benlysta?

Novartis and Amazing Race host ride tandem for MS awareness

Matthew Arnold May 25, 2011

Amazing Race host Phil Keoghan will lead a Novartis-sponsored team of women pro cyclists on a 10-city bike tour to raise awareness of MS.

Patients prefer health media sites to user-generated content for medical info, says survey

Matthew Arnold May 03, 2011

Consumers continue to trust health magazines, websites and WebMD more than user-generated contribution sites like Wikipedia, Facebook or Twitter for medical information, according to a survey.

GSW launches health and wellness practice

Matthew Arnold April 06, 2011

InVentiv's GSW is going after the consumer health and wellness market with an offshoot, dubbed The Well @GSW, aimed at OTC brands, consumer products and retail accounts.

Havas launches "#a11y" digital practice for disabilities market

Matthew Arnold April 05, 2011

Havas Drive has launched a practice focused on developing digital products for persons with disabilities and those undergoing rehabilitative therapies.

Company news: K-V Pharmaceutical and Ther-Rx

March 31, 2011

In a blow to K-V Pharmaceutical, the FDA said it will not take action against pharmacies that make hydroxyprogesterone caproate, the active ingredient in K-V's recently approved pre-term labor prevention drug Makena.

Teva, P&G partner to form global OTC behemoth

Matthew Arnold March 24, 2011

Teva is partnering with Procter & Gamble in an OTC drug marketing joint venture that will boast annual sales of more than $1 billion -- and which could ultimately be worth four times that, the companies say.

Everyday Health moves aggressively into mobile apps

Matthew Arnold March 15, 2011

Everyday Health is going big on mobile, with 23 apps in six verticals, seeking advantage against its older competitor WebMD.

Roche maintained DTC spending on Boniva, while competitors cut back

Ben Comer March 03, 2011

Sally Field's winsome smile may have helped to curb declining sales of Roche's Boniva in 2010, but it didn't carry the drug past Warner Chilcott's Actonel, despite a substantially higher DTC spend.

With job stress high and money tight, women refocus on health, says survey

Matthew Arnold February 01, 2011

The percentage of women surveyed that said they're buying prescription medications was way up in 2010 - to 64% from 48% in 2009 - a jump the survey's sponsors, Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness and Time Inc.'s Health, said points to a recessionary refocusing on personal health with great potential for healthcare marketers.

GSK launches new Alli spots, hands five OTC brands to Meda

Ben Comer January 05, 2011

GlaxoSmithKline launched new commercials for Alli, in time for New Year's resolutions and holiday overeating remorse, and handed off five OTC products to Meda Pharmaceuticals.

Info-starved patients want more from docs, survey says

Ben Comer December 15, 2010

Doctors aren't doing enough to educate patients about disease management, leaving patients to fend for themselves, according to a MedTera study conducted in September.

Patient advocacy influential in drug development, says panel

Ben Comer December 08, 2010

Patient advocacy groups are an increasingly valuable resource for pharma manufacturers and FDA throughout the drug development process, since they provide, among other things, a crucial perspective, according to a New York Pharma Forum panel last week.

Novo launches new consumer ads for Victoza

Ben Comer October 21, 2010

Novo Nordisk launched a consumer campaign for Victoza, emphasizing the product's ability to bring down blood sugar levels and body weight in patients with type 2 diabetes. The campaign features print ads and a refurbished website, and marks the first consumer push for the brand since its approval in January.

Online behavior varies by condition type and stage, study says

Ben Comer October 06, 2010

Consumers looking for diabetes information online respond to different tools and website functionality than, say, people looking for information on cancer or heart disease, a new study found.

Mia Hamm fronts GSK vaccine awareness effort

Ben Comer September 29, 2010

GlaxoSmithKline tapped soccer phenom Mia Hamm for a new vaccine awareness campaign promoting vaccines as an integral part of adult health. Hamm fronted a MedImmune/AstraZeneca flu vaccine awareness campaign last summer.

Pfizer clinical director calls for better understanding of e-patients

James Chase September 29, 2010

A senior Pfizer R&D executive is calling for clinical trials to make better use of the phenomenon of the "empowered e-patient" - but admits that highly interactive e-patients can pose challenges to the data collection process.

Amgen, Pfizer and Project Runway's Tim Gunn offer psoriasis style tips

Ben Comer September 22, 2010

Amgen and Pfizer teamed up with fashion guru Tim Gunn for five videos offering style tips -- or 'psophisticated styles' -- for psoriasis patients. The videos resemble reality television shows and feature style consultations with the five winners of the Addressing Psoriasis contest launched last year.

DDMAC slaps Premarin patient testimonials, Acuvail journal ad

Ben Comer September 14, 2010

Patient testimonial videos on the brand.com homepage for Wyeth's (now Pfizer's) Premarin overstated the drug's efficacy and minimized risks, while a journal ad for Allergan's Acuvail made unsubstantiated superiority claims, overstated efficacy, broadened the drug's indication, and omitted risk information, according to a pair of untitled DDMAC letters.

About.com users find drug ads more helpful in 2010, survey says

Ben Comer September 09, 2010

Online drug ads are significantly more helpful this year, particularly with respect to side effect and safety information, according to an About.com survey of its users.

Covidien launches opioid patient safety alliance

Ben Comer September 08, 2010

Covidien launched a patient safety organization - the Collaborating & Acting Responsibly to Ensure Safety (CARES) Alliance - today, featuring tools and resources for patients, physicians and pharmacists.

Arnold Palmer fronts Centocor, Us TOO prostate cancer website

Ben Comer September 01, 2010

Golf legend and prostate cancer survivor Arnold Palmer is the celebrity face of a new educational website and program developed by Centocor Ortho Biotech and Us TOO, a nonprofit prostate cancer support organization.

Abbott launches website, widget for psoriasis awareness

Ben Comer August 12, 2010

Abbott launched a psoriasis educational website and a widget, the latter offering weekly tips and facts delivered to the user's personal desktop.

Good Health Media and Tynt target copy and paste keywords

Ben Comer August 10, 2010

Visitors who copy and paste keywords on any of Good Health Media's 140 web properties will prompt a box of sponsored links, courtesy of Tynt Multimedia technology.

Novartis Facebook Share widget provokes DDMAC letter

Ben Comer August 05, 2010

A Facebook Share widget found on Novartis' Tasigna website provoked a DDMAC Untitled Letter, the fourth DDMAC communiqué Novartis has received this year.

DDMAC regulatory letters could double in 2010

Ben Comer July 22, 2010

New Year's Eve is five months away, but FDA letter-writers have already been prolific in 2010 on themes of risk omission, inflated efficacy claims, and unfair balance presentation as seen in promotional materials targeting physicians and consumers.

Everyday Health to manage PDR's consumer web property

Ben Comer July 01, 2010

Everyday Health and Physicians' Desk Reference (PDR) announced a long-term partnership that hands advertising duties for PDRHealth.com -- PDR's consumer offering -- to Everyday Health. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Yahoo! Health hopes new apps, content boost advertising

Marc Iskowitz June 23, 2010

Yahoo! expanded its Health offering, deepening content and offering three new search apps it says will enable advertisers to better reach target audiences, including through contextual advertising.