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Arimidex

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Comments

  • jessamine
    jessamine Member Posts: 123
    edited June 2010
    Femara vs Arimidex- I don't really know but- when my onc said that if my symptoms didn't let up he'd switch me to a different AI, I asked him what the difference was. He said they all are the same, as far as the main effect, but have different side effects b/c the main ingredient is in a different base and some of the SEs are from the base, not the AI. I said, there must be a reason you started me on the A, if it's better in some way I want to stay on it- he said he used it mostly b/c he was more familiar with the pattern of SEs and thus can advise people about them better, how long they'll last, etc. I'm guessing this is the case in general- drs prescribe it b/c it's what they're familiar with, and since I believe it was the first AI (right? anyone?) pretty much all the oncs are going to know it better so the only people on the femara, aromasin etc are going to be those who couldn't tolerate the Arimidex.
  • jessamine
    jessamine Member Posts: 123
    edited June 2010

    oh yeah and generic- YEEEEEESSSS!!!!!! This is such good news I kind of can't believe it. This is great!!!

  • don23
    don23 Member Posts: 213
    edited July 2010

    Took my first pill this morning. Keeping my fingers and toes crossed for no side effects!

  • sobx
    sobx Member Posts: 108
    edited July 2010

    Just stopping by and catching up with the last few days.

    I agree the SE's should be on a separate site so it is easy to find. It will just get lost on this one.

    I tried Femara and the SE's were worse than the ones on Arimidex. So I went back to "A". I guess it just is whatever you can put up with.

  • otter
    otter Member Posts: 757
    edited July 2010

    This is for those women on Femara who might be lurking on this Arimidex thread:

    From what I found while googling, the patent on Femara (from Novartis) expires in June 2011.  As we saw with Arimidex, the patent could be extended beyond that date for a bunch of reasons.  But, maybe things will go smoothly and it really will expire just one year from now.  Here's the note where I read that info:  http://breast-cancer.emedtv.com/femara/generic-femara.html

    So, what happens after that?  Same thing as we're seeing with generic Arimidex/anastrozole, most likely.  There are at least two pharmaceutical companies that have already received FDA approval for their generic versions of Femara:  Mylan and TEVA.  Those are big-time generic manufacturers, both of which are marketing generic versions of Arimidex as of this week.  Here are the links where I read about those approvals.  They're considered "tentative" because the original patent hasn't expired yet.  I think they convert to "final" approvals once Novartis loses its patent.

    http://www.biosciencetechnology.com article on TEVA's tentative FDA OK for generic femara

    http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSWEN761920070503

    None of those websites are "official" -- they're just press releases to business/marketing sites.  But this is the same thing we saw for Arimidex awhile back; so it's good news for those taking Femara now or needing to switch to it in the future.

    otter

  • claire_in_seattle
    claire_in_seattle Member Posts: 2,793
    edited July 2010

    I picked up "anastrazole" yesterday with a $10 co-pay vs $135 for Arimidex.  Works for me.

    So glad I waited to the very last second to refill.  Have no idea who manufactures and don't care if works the same.  YAY!!!!

  • otter
    otter Member Posts: 757
    edited July 2010

    Claire, I'd love to see what the full, retail cost of these new generics will be.  My pharmacist speculated yesterday that the companies making the generic Arimidex won't be able to charge much less than AstraZeneca has been charging.  Apparently, it's a really expensive drug to manufacture.  She said our insurance companies are the ones that will be taking the hit on this; since they almost always give a huge discount to us if we buy a generic (the co-pays being much, much lower for the generic, as you've pointed out).

    But, I don't care and I don't care.  I confess that I did let her fill my prescription yesterday with the brand-name Arimidex, because I needed a refill and didn't want to wait until she gets the generic in (which might not be until next Monday).  She thought it was a good idea to go ahead and get it filled yesterday, which was the last day I could get the brand-name.  (It did cross my mind that she was probably happy to be able to unload some of the remaining brand-name Arimidex she had on hand.)  Oh, and my co-pay for 90 days of brand-name Arimidex is just $30.  In October 2010, that will go up to $80 for 90 days of a "preferred" drug, which still isn't outrageous; but any little savings helps.

    Next time, she said, I will most likely have to get the generic.  No problem.

    otter

  • thegoodfight
    thegoodfight Member Posts: 124
    edited July 2010

    I was one of the lucky ones who had great rx coverage and three months of Arimidex cost me $20.  I know I am very lucky.  Now it might cost me the same or $10 for a three months supply, but I hope the generic is really as good.  If I am going to suffer all these se's, I want to know that it is the real deal and helping ward off more cancer.  I know I would feel differently if I had been paying large out of pocket prices, but as I said this is one area where I have been so very lucky.  Mine is to be automatically filled in a few weeks.  I will let you know what I get in the mail and how much it cost.

    Caren

  • claire_in_seattle
    claire_in_seattle Member Posts: 2,793
    edited July 2010

    Since I provide my own health insurance, believe it or not, it was cheaper overall to go with the plan that covers less of my meds.  $135 is actually 30% of the cost of a month's supply for my pharmacy, or so they said.  I could not ascertain what the original cost of Anastrazole was.

    The bottom line is that I don't care as long as generic does the job.  I see no reason why it shouldn't as this is regulated.  Nice to have the money.

    Yesterday was an expensive day, but because of the dentist.  Replaced two old fillings which I have learned is a good thing to do prior to having teeth break from cracks and decay underneath.  So one more of those to go, and I am done with something like $18k of work over three years.

  • sue-61
    sue-61 Member Posts: 262
    edited July 2010

    I'm still waiting to hear back from my mail away pharm but did check my insurance web and am not seeing a generic.  I found this following statement by googling "generic arimidex" and wanted to share.

     

    Is Anastrozole a Generic Arimidex?

    No -- anastrozole is the active ingredient in Arimidex, but is not a generic version of it. What can be confusing is that, oftentimes, the active ingredient of any drug is referred to as the "generic name." The generic name is different from a generic version of a medicine.
     
  • O3132W
    O3132W Member Posts: 15
    edited July 2010

    I just spoke to my Med Onc office to get another scrip for Arimidex and was told that it has just gone generic and should not cost me so much.   Yaaaa!

  • weety
    weety Member Posts: 378
    edited July 2010

    I really feel for you all having to pay so much for prescriptions!  With my insurance policy I only pay $5 for a 90 day supply of any drug that is prescribed to me!  I'm a teacher--that's probably the reason for the good insurance policy.

  • thegoodfight
    thegoodfight Member Posts: 124
    edited July 2010
    Weety, that's sort of my point.  Many of us have a good deal and were not paying much for the "name" brand.  Now we might pay a little less, but I am not comfortable about the generic.  Don't get me wrong, I do take some generics, I just wanted to know that I was getting the best Arimidex I could get.  Does anyone know how to determine if it is really as good.  I feel like now I am buying the "store brand" instead of the name brand.   This bc thing makes you think like a crazy person and keeps you forever scared Undecided
  • sue-61
    sue-61 Member Posts: 262
    edited July 2010

    THE GOOD FIGHT

    I hear you! I posted above your post that anastrozole is merely an ingredient so I am cautious also. My pharmacy  mail away doesn't list a generic for arimidex and the weird thing is I just got a COUPON via email from astra zeneca offering me fifty bucks off the cost of my next refill. Keep in mind that I havea 2K deductible on my plan and the cost of the Arimidex was going to be $1123. 

    Astra Zeneca must be running scared. I am not sure if my pharmacy would refill a brand name IF there is a generic avaialble. Unfortunately (for me) my health insurance company OWNS the pharmacy and I have to use same! 

  • sue-61
    sue-61 Member Posts: 262
    edited July 2010

    I just emailed astra zeneca

    http://www.astrazeneca.com/about-us/contact-us

  • ronqt1
    ronqt1 Member Posts: 565
    edited July 2010

    In addition to the info I received from Aetna, (home Rx Delivery) regarding generic version of Arimidex, paper also stated that, it also stated "you will get the generic medification unless you or your doctor indicated otherwise."  It goes on to say re: generic meds - They contain the same active ingredients in the same amounts as the brand-name products. Diference is that generics may be a different color, shape or size.

    Maybe the s/e's will be milder. Wouldn't that be great.

    Waiting to see what comes back re: Sue-61's email response from Astrazena will be.

  • sue-61
    sue-61 Member Posts: 262
    edited July 2010

    I just found this info on line at TEVA, one of the drug companies. It says they are selling "anastrozole." From what I read else where, anastrozole is a COMPONENT of arimidex. All this is too confusing for me right now.

    Press Release

    Teva Announces Launch of Generic ARIMIDEX® Jerusalem, June 28, 2010 - Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (Nasdaq:TEVA) announced today U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval and commercial launch of Anastrozole Tablets 1 mg, the Company's generic version of AstraZeneca's ARIMIDEX®. The product is indicated for treatment of certain forms of breast cancer in postmenopausal women.

    The brand product had annual sales of approximately $916.8 million in the United States, based on IMS sales data.

    About Teva
    Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., headquartered in Israel, is among the top 15 pharmaceutical companies in the world and is the leading generic pharmaceutical company. The company develops, manufactures and markets generic and innovative pharmaceuticals and active pharmaceutical ingredients. Over 80 percent of Teva's sales are in North America and Western Europe.

    Teva's Safe Harbor Statement under the U. S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995:
    This release contains forward-looking statements, which express the current beliefs and expectations of management. Such statements are based on management's current beliefs and expectations and involve a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause our future results, performance or achievements to differ significantly from the results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include risks relating to: our ability to successfully develop and commercialize additional pharmaceutical products, the introduction of competing generic equivalents, the extent to which we may obtain U.S. market exclusivity for certain of our new generic products and regulatory changes that may prevent us from utilizing exclusivity periods, potential liability for sales of generic products prior to a final resolution of outstanding patent litigation, including that relating to the generic versions of Neurontin®, Lotrel® and Protonix®, the extent to which any manufacturing or quality control problems damage our reputation for high quality production, the effects of competition on sales of our innovative products, especially Copaxone® (including potential generic and oral competition for Copaxone®), the impact of continuing consolidation of our distributors and customers, our ability to identify, consummate and successfully integrate acquisitions, interruptions in our supply chain or problems with our information technology systems that adversely affect our complex manufacturing processes, intense competition in our specialty pharmaceutical businesses, any failures to comply with the complex Medicare and Medicaid reporting and payment obligations, our exposure to currency fluctuations and restrictions as well as credit risks, the effects of reforms in healthcare regulation, adverse effects of political or economical instability, major hostilities or acts of terrorism on our significant worldwide operations, increased government scrutiny in both the U.S. and Europe of our agreements with brand companies, dependence on the effectiveness of our patents and other protections for innovative products, our ability to achieve expected results through our innovative R&D efforts, the difficulty of predicting U.S. Food and Drug Administration, European Medicines Agency and other regulatory authority approvals, uncertainties surrounding the legislative and regulatory pathway for the registration and approval of biotechnology-based products, potentially significant impairments of intangible assets and goodwill, potential increases in tax liabilities resulting from challenges to our intercompany arrangements, our potential exposure to product liability claims to the extent not covered by insurance, the termination or expiration of governmental programs or tax benefits, current economic conditions, any failure to retain key personnel or to attract additional executive and managerial talent, environmental risks and other factors that are discussed in this report and in our other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC").

    Company Contacts:

    Investor Relations:
    Elana Holzman
    Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.
    972 (3) 926-7554

    Kevin Mannix
    Teva North America
    (215) 591-8912

    Media:
    Yossi Koren
    Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.
    972 (3) 926-7590

    Denise Bradley
    Teva North America
    (215) 591-8974
  • ruthbru
    ruthbru Member Posts: 47,656
    edited July 2010

    I have a recheck the 13th & 'Does the generic contain EXACTLY the same ingredients as the Arimidex I now take?' will be on my list of questions to ask!

  • pj12
    pj12 Member Posts: 18,108
    edited July 2010

    Here is how I understand it......

    A pill has an active ingredient. In the case of Arimidex, it is anastrazole. It also has other ingredients to make it dissolve in the tummy, to buffer it, to color it, to make it taste okay, to make it slick on the way down, stuff like that. A generic of Arimidex should contain the same 1 mg of Anastrazole but might have different "inactive" ingredients.

    I don't think a generic will be exactly the same but the active ingredient should be exactly the same. Someone might know more about this than I do. 

  • sue-61
    sue-61 Member Posts: 262
    edited July 2010

    Ruthbru and pj 12345 and all

    I just checked the sandoz website, which is a division of novartis, a well known drug company.  They also are calling arimidex anastrozole. This is all very weird and confusing as I was told by the FDA that the big A would NOT become generic til 2012. I certainly don't want to compromise my prognosis; I never asked my onc if he knew when the drug would become generic (altho I did ask for FREE samples....I am so bad) but several other BC buddies have been aware that the generic was coming and here it is. Kind of caught me off guard. And then I get a $50 COUPON (and I love coupons) from Astra Zeneca........huh? And with my own health insurance company owning the mail away pharmacy and I HAVE TO USE it (or else!) and they are not offering a generic.........is this all about the almighty dollar? 

    I will let you all know if I hear back from the email that I sent to AZ. I copied the link and think it might be a good idea for all concerned to also email them. 

  • ruthbru
    ruthbru Member Posts: 47,656
    edited July 2010

    I just got an e-mail with the $50 coupon too! Hmmm................

  • cw89134
    cw89134 Member Posts: 62
    edited July 2010

    Sue-61,

    I am in a similar situation in that my bulk mail pharmacy is owned by my insurance company (I have a PPO plan which includes a Medicare Part D drug plan). I called the pharmacy service today and was told that they had received an email (I guess from the FDA) about generic Arimidex (I had to spell out Anastrozole to the customer rep) but that they don't have it in yet. "Call back in two weeks" were the instructions I received.

    PM me if you want the names of my insurance company and bulk mail pharmacy.

  • pj12
    pj12 Member Posts: 18,108
    edited July 2010

    Well,.... one can buy a brand named product, say Motrin. Or you can buy an generic Ibuprofen which is the active ingredient in Motrin.  You are getting the same "drug" delivered in a different package. So, for instance, Wal-mart would call their product Equate Ibuprofen. Wal-mart could not call their product Motrin even though it is the same drug.

    No one else can call their product Arimidex. AZ owns that name. So other companies call their drug by its active ingredient, anastrazole.

    Another example is Coumadin made by Bristol Myers Squibb. This is the "name brand" drug but it is really warfarin sulfate.   You can buy Warfarin sulfate, a generic, and it is the same thing and it is much cheaper.

  • ruthbru
    ruthbru Member Posts: 47,656
    edited July 2010

    But, for instance, with generic ambien, the formula is the same but has been changed in this way; it's the same drug but the generic delivers it all at once instead of throughout the night, so it does not work as well as the more expensive Ambien CR (having sleep issues & having tried them both, this I know!). So the issue could be in the delivery. Another question to ask.

  • rdeb
    rdeb Member Posts: 2
    edited July 2010

    Hello,

     This is my first post, so if I haven't done this right, please let me know.  I just wanted to let folks know that you can get "generic" Arimidex in Canada, they just call it Anastrozole.  My insurance doesn't cover it and my oncologist was all for ordering in Canada.  I paid $176 for a two months supply and that includes shipping.  A friend had been ordering from a particular company in Canada for years , so I felt comfortable with them.  I received the meds within 12 days.  It's very exciting to see Arimidex going generic, but I have a feeling it will take years to compete with Canada's price for us folks without insurance help.  (My insurance will pay 40% up to $150 which comes out only about $60 in coverage.)

     On a side note,  I've been on the meds for a little over 3 weeks with minimal joint issues.  What's the usual time frame to get the full effects of side effects?

    Thank you

    Debbie

  • ruthbru
    ruthbru Member Posts: 47,656
    edited July 2010

    I had my creaky joints pretty much had right away. So maybe you are off the hook on that SE! Smile

  • lisa34lisa
    lisa34lisa Member Posts: 32
    edited July 2010

    Hi Ruth...

    Ambien (the original....zolpidem tartrate ) is a drug that is released all at once.  It went generic. 

    That is when the drug company came out with Ambien CR.  (controlled release).  It, so far, is not generic.  There are differences in the two.  Believe it or not, you can still buy the original Ambien.  The brand name.  But, the generic zolpidem tartrate is the same thing and is much less expensive.  Ambien CR... there is no generic yet. 

    Laughing  Not trying to be a know-it-all.  I just don't want anyone thinking the two drugs are the same. 

    btw:  it's 12:48am here now.  Seems as if *I* may need either one of the two!

    Yall have a great 4th!  

  • Kathy044
    Kathy044 Member Posts: 94
    edited July 2010

    I feel so ashamed whenever the topic of getting "generic" Armidex from Canada comes up (I don't know why). Anyway buyer beware, read the webpages carefully. There is only one anastrolzole product legally sold within Canada and that's Armidex. See for yourself in the Health Canada drug database:

    http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/dhp-mps/prodpharma/databasdon/index-eng.php

    {search by active ingredient}

    I started taking Armidex a month ago, everything is ok so far <whew>, but I've just learned from the results of a bone density test that I have osteoporosis in the spine. 

    The DXXA results were supposed to be available at my last onc appointment before we made the final decision to do Armidex but they weren't, but I wanted to get started anyway. That's why I've been busy researching available bone drugs on the above database, there are quite a few companies making a generic version of Fosomax for example, though as I can't swallow pills whole we ended up choosing a generic version of Didronel another oral bisphosphate instead.

  • sue-61
    sue-61 Member Posts: 262
    edited July 2010

    Boy, what a lot of good information to digest on this site this AM. I still have heard nothing from all the emails and questions that I have sent to the appropriate sources. I will keep everyone posted if I do get any further info. I do certainly understand about generics and use generic motrin all the time. My DH was on coumadin and needed to stay on that brand name drug as warfarin was not doing what it was supposed to do. That's my fear with a new generic. I guess the thing that really threw me is getting a coupon out of the blue. Never heard of a coupon for a medication and I love coupons.

  • thegoodfight
    thegoodfight Member Posts: 124
    edited July 2010

    this generic talk is actually making me nervous.   I am wondering if  I ask my onc to write a new rx that says no generic substitute if my mail order will fill my Arimidex at the same low price I have been getting if for.   I wonder if they can change the price now that a generic is available??????

    BTW, I got the coupon too and we all can figure it out that the timing is based on the generic release.   Where were these coupons for those who desperately needed them before the generic became available.  

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