New drugs promise lower genetic heart risk in India

The world's top pharmaceutical companies are developing drugs to lower a type of cholesterol common among Indians due to genetic factors, which may be launched in the country in the coming years.

- Jessica Jani

Companies like Novartis and Eli Lilly are working on drugs to treat high levels of lipoprotein(a), also called Lp(a), a type of cholesterol that has no therapy yet and cannot be reduced by diet or exercise.

High levels of cholesterol are a leading cause of heart attacks and strokes, with South Asians genetically more vulnerable to high levels of Lp(a).

"One of the biggest healthcare burdens in India is on the cardiovascular side," said Amitabh Dube, country president and managing director, Novartis India. "We're trying to focus ourselves on the cardiovascular segment where we believe we can make the biggest change in India. What we are seeing today is that the cardiac burden is impacting a younger lot of population (more) than the older lot," said Dube, whose company is strengthening its cardiovascular portfolio in India.

The likely debut of such drugs could help reduce the burden of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) that cause one in every four non-natural deaths in India, aggravated by lifestyle issues. While higher Lp(a) levels are not the leading cause of CVDs, they increase the risk of developing it, especially among people with other risk factors like high blood pressure, smoking, diabetes and obesity.