The Gang of Seven AstraZeneca employee(s) communicating with Peter Rost, the Pfizer exec-turned-whisteblower and blogger, are providing a game of connect the dots to better understand the allegations of off-label marketing that are swirling around the drugmaker.

The latest piece involves unsubstantiated accusations that Abraxis BioScience may have encouraged AstraZeneca to use illegal marketing to increase sales of Abraxane, a newer version of an older cancer drug that the two companies jointly promote.

Abraxis founder Patrick Soon-Shiong, by the way, is a controversial figure without being pulled into this affair. As Rost notes, he’s been criticized for hyping research and accused of ripping off his investors. Abraxane is a much more expensive version of paclitaxel, although little difference exists, and the drug is a big seller with forecasts of $1 billion by 2010.

Rost reports taht some AstraZeneca oncology sales reps claim the big sales “may have been built upon off-label marketing,” which was discussed at a joint sales meeting between AstraZeneca and Abraxis, which took place in December 2006 in Pittsburgh.

As Rost writes: “The meeting was led by AstraZeneca regional sales director Mike Zubillaga, who has since been terminated by AstraZeneca, together with an Abraxis Medical Science Liaison (MSL) and two District Sales Managers; one from Abraxis and one from AstraZeneca. Eight AstraZeneca oncology sales reps and eight Abraxis reps participated in the training, and they received the assistance of a whopping seven oncologists, who made some extra cash, tutoring the sixteen sales reps.”

The AZ sales reps, he says, charge that an Abraxis medical science liaison made it known that “Abraxis MSLs were available for off-label discussions (such as lung cancer) with oncology doctors, and that the AZ reps should use them as a resource. Then the Abraxis District Sales Manager allegedly pointed out that coordination of these meetings should be done by cell phone only, and that email or voicemail should be avoided.”

Further reading:
Peter Rost’s blog;
Background on Abraxis (registration required).

[tags]Abraxis Biosciences, AstraZeneca[/tags]