Wonder drug: A new heart drug has shown to cut deaths by a fifth and reduce hospital admissions
A new heart drug which tests have shown to save 20 per cent more lives than existing treatments could be reeled out to patients as early as next year.
Research carried out on 8,442 patients with heart failure has achieved 'remarkable' results - proving that the drug not only helps people live longer, but also means they feel better and spend less time in hospital.
Experts at the European Cardiology Society congress in Barcelona called the new compound, known as LCZ696, a 'major advance' in the treatment of heart failure, as it not only stops hormones which damage the heart, but also increases production of helpful ones.
In the study, which saw people with heart failure given either the new drug or existing treatment - 'gold standard' Enalapril - 21.8 per cent of people given LCZ696 died from heart-related issues, compared with 26.5 per cent for the Enalapril.
A further 17 per cent of patients receiving LCZ696 and 19.8 per cent of those receiving Enalapril died from any cause.
Co-leader of the trial, Professor John McMurray of the University of Glasgow, said: 'We have what we believe is a much more effective replacement for one of the gold standard drugs for the treatment of heart failure. This is a major advance in the treatment of this terrible problem.'
The new compound, which is produced by Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis, also reduced hospitalisation for heart failure by 21 per cent, experts said.
The 'emphatic' results prompted researchers to bring the trial to an early close after 27 months.
Co-author of the study, Professor Milton Packer of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Centre, described the 'magnitude of the advantages' of LCZ696 as 'highly statistically significant and clinically important'.
Professor McMurray added: 'Compared with our current gold-standard treatment Enalapril, LCZ696 made patients live longer, stay out of hospital and feel better, fulfilling all our goals of treatment.
Current heart treatment Enalapril
'This is a remarkable finding and strongly supports using this new approach instead of an ACE inhibitor or ARB in the treatment of chronic heart failure.'
He explained: 'What this new drug LCZ696 does is simultaneously inhibit the bad hormones - like Enalapril - but in addition boosts the production of beneficial hormones.
'Several of these beneficial substances stimulate the kidneys to produce more urine, to excrete sodium and water, and act to relax blood vessels. All of these actions unload the failing heart.
'By having this dual effect LCZ696 had extra beneficial actions compared with Enalapril and in this way improved patient outcomes.'
Heart failure occurs when it has been damaged, perhaps by a heart attack, and cannot pump blood around the body as effectively as it used to.
The body responds to the low flow of blood by producing hormones such as angiotensin II and noradrenaline. But these hormones constrict blood vessels and actually make it harder for the failing heart to squeeze blood into them.
Over time, the constant production of these hormones further damages the heart, blood vessels and kidneys.
Enalapril works by blocking or inhibiting these hormones and therefore slows down or even reverses the progressive worsening of the condition, experts said.
Patients on the experimental drug did have slightly more hypotension (low blood pressure) and non-serious angiodema, but less kidney impairment, cough, and hyperkalemia (abnormally high levels of potassium in the blood) than the Enalapril group.
The new wonder drug will now be subject to regulatory review, but could be licensed for use next year, when the NHS could then authorise it to be used widely.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2738993/Remarkable-new-heart-drug-cut-deaths-fifth-available-early-year.html#ixzz3BzntdlJe
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
