Asthma Drug Scare at GSK

Jul. 14–GlaxoSmithKline’s best selling product could be cleared from pharmacists’ shelves by US regulators who have raised concerns over its safety. Extensive patient tests suggest the active ingredient of GSK asthma drug Advair could be linked to a number of premature deaths.

America’s Food & Drug Administration have put Advair, another Glaxo product, Serevent, and Foradil, made by Swiss giant Novartis, under scrutiny.

They may decide to bolster warnings on the packaging, but can also pull Advair and its competitors from the market. Last year the GSK drug raked in sales of £2.7bn.

The market was untroubled by the news as shares ended up 20p at 1,374p.

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