This may be the Labor Day weekend in the US, but in Munich, leading cardiologists and pharmaceutical mavens are gathering for the annual European Society of Cardiology meeting, which began today and runs through Wednesday.

Beyond the usual stream of clinical trials, the most sensational story is likely to be the final results of the Vytorin SEAS study. Preliminary data showed an unexpected linked to cancer. The full picture will be presented Tuesday morning. Meanwhile…

A prescription fish-oil pill offered moderate benefits in patients with heart failure, such as lessened risk of death and hospital admissions, unlike widely prescribed cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins. In a large trial involving almost 7,000 patients in Italy, researchers found that people taking the pill - sold as Lovaza in the US by Glaxo and known in Europe as Omacor - were less likely to die or admitted to hospital when compared with those given a dummy pill. More…

Lilly and Daiichi Sankyo’s new blood-thinning drug prasugrel appears better for diabetes patients than Plavix, researchers reported. The Plavix rival, which is a key product for Lilly and Daiichi, has been delayed amid findings of serious bleeding and further FDA review. Researchers say a new analysis of results from the previously reported TRITON-TIMI 38 clinical trial showed the benefit of prasugrel tended to be greater in patients with diabetes than those without the condition. More and more…

AstraZeneca’s Crestor cholesterol pill failed in a second clinical trial for heart failure, suggesting such statins don’t improve survival in patients with the chronic condition. Patients given Crestor proved just as likely to die early or be admitted to hospital with cardiovascular problems as those on standard therapy alone. In the study, involving 4,500 patients followed for an average of 3.9 years, 29 percent of people taking Crestor died from any cause against 28 percent of those given a placebo. More…

Bayer plans to accelerate development of its Xarelto anticoagulant, its most important pipeline product. Along with its partner, Johnson & Johnson, the German drugmaker will begin a Phase III trial for preventing acute coronary syndrome, or ACS - an umbrella term covering symptoms ranging from severe chest pain to heart attacks - earlier than the previously planned date of second half of 2009. More…