Mike Ward, a pharmaceuticals analyst at Ambrian in London, said that as safety risks had hit its popularity, Avandia's US sales had dwindled to barely 1.5% of Glaxo's turnover. But Avandia also faces regulatory scrutiny in Europe, and litigation arising from a medical thumbs-down could be costly.
"Glaxo would argue it wants a scientific debate, rather than a debate in the press and wild statements by politicians in the US," said Ward. "As a business it's financially strong, but if Avandia is pulled from the market, we'd expect a whole bunch of people making claims." As many as 13,000 people in the US have joined lawsuits against Glaxo over Avandia's safety, posing a potential liability, based on previous settlements, of $1bn (£664m).
via guardian.co.uk
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