Phase III trial of Aranesp (Amgen) in anemic Heart Failure patients shows drug offers no real benefit

Results from the RED-HF trial involved 2,278 anemic Heart Failure patients given either Aranesp (darbepoetin alfa), from Amgen, or placebo shows the drug does not improve patients' health, nor does it reduce their risk of death from Heart Failure. In the darbepoetin alfa group, 50.7 percent of the patients experienced death from any cause or hospitalization for worsening Heart Failure. In the placebo group, 49.5 percent of the patients experienced similar clinical outcomes.

Findings suggest that haemoglobin is a marker of poor prognosis in Heart Failure, rather than a therapeutic target. There were no new safety findings identified in the study. However, researchers observed an increased risk of thrombosis in the darbepoetin alfa group. Results of the study were presented at the American College of Cardiology's annual meeting in San Francisco and published online by The New England Journal of Medicine. See: "Treatment of Anemia with Darbepoetin Alfa in Systolic Heart Failure." Karl Swedberg et al. New England Journal of Medicine, March 10, 2013DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa1214865