Endo Pharmaceuticals makes two nearly identical hormone-blocking drugs, but the one approved for central precocious puberty in children is considerably more expensive, according to Kaiser Health News.
Both drugs, Supprelin LA and Vantas, contain 50 milligrams of histrelin acetate. The active ingredient in the drug works to increase the body's production of some hormones while decreasing others.
The prices of the two drugs, which are under-the-skin implants, vary drastically. Supprelin LA, approved by the FDA in 2007 for central precocious puberty, has a list price of $37,300. Vantas, approved by the FDA in 2004 for late-stage prostate cancer, has a list price of $4,400.
The main difference between the drug implants is that Supprelin LA releases 65 micrograms of the drug and Vantas releases 50 micrograms a day of the drug, according to the report.
Physicians who recommend Vantas over the more expensive option say it has the same effectiveness in children with central precocious puberty.
In one instance analyzed in the report, the daughter of Sudeep Taksali, MD, an orthopedic surgeon, needed the hormone-blocking implant after she was diagnosed with central precocious puberty.
The daughter's physicians told Dr. Taksali about the cheaper version of the drug. He wanted his daughter to get the less expensive option because it had the same effectiveness. However, his insurer would only cover the more expensive option since it is approved for central precocious puberty.
"From a parent standpoint, as a physician, as a consumer, it feels abusive," Dr. Taksali, told the publication. "There’s sort of a predation on parents who have that sense of vulnerability, who will do anything within their means to help their children."
Endo Pharmaceuticals told Kaiser Health News that Supprelin LA and Vantas had such different price tags because the implants aren't identical and treat different conditions. The drugmaker declined to comment about why the different conditions meant the prices should be different and whether it was more expensive to manufacture one versus the other.
Drugmakers often use the same chemical compound to create different branded drugs to treat different diseases. Other drugmakers have done this for years. One example is Pfizer, which uses sildenafil citrate in two drugs: Viagra for erectile dysfunction and Revatio for pulmonary arterial hypertension, according to the report.