New injection could cut cholesterol

A new drug has the potential to significantly cut levels of bad cholesterol.

Currently, statins are used to combat high cholesterol and help reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke in patients.

However, this approach does not work for everyone.

According to the Daily Mail, Sanofi US and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals have joined forces to create the fortnightly injection capable of reducing the body’s low-density lipoprotein (LDL) by around three-quarters.

The drug, named REGN727, works by blocking a protein that transports LDL from the liver to the blood vessels and works in patients that have been resistant to statins.

Professor Keith Fox, a cardiologist at the University of Edinburgh, told the newsource that the development is "very exciting".

"If this new treatment can help these people, that is a potentially exciting development, but it’s still very early days."

It is likely to be several years before the injection becomes available on the market.

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