AstraZeneca today formally unveiled data showing Crestor, its new cholesterol-lowering drug, was more effective than Pfizer Lipitor, the current gold standard treatment.
The positive results will give AstraZeneca vital ammunition in a looming battle with Pfizer for dominance of the market in so-called statins, one of the biggest and fastest-growing classes of modern medicines.
Crestor is the star among five new drugs AstraZeneca hopes will plug a gap left by the demise of ulcer pill Losec, the world's top-selling medicine, which is now facing generic competition.
The consensus among analysts is that the drug should achieve annual peak sales of $3.1 billion, according to independent pharmaceutical consultancy Evaluate.
The total market for products reducing fat in the blood was $15.9 billion in 2000, with Lipitor alone raking in $5.8 billion, according to information provider IMS Health.
The market has been growing by 20-30 percent a year as more people are prescribed drugs which have proved highly effective at reducing the risk of heart disease, the western world's number one killer.