Cancer drug stent keeps leg arteries open
U.S. medical device reviewers said a Cook Medical stent coated with a common cancer-fighting drug was safe and effective for treating clogged arteries in the thighs. Zilver PTX, the first drug-coated stent to treat peripheral arteries, kept arteries free from plaque longer than bare-metal stents, the Food and Drug Administration reviewers said in documents released on Tuesday.
Privately held Cook Medical competes against Boston Scientific and Medtronic, which also make leg stents, in a stent market estimated at $5 billion worldwide. Stents are tiny mesh-like tubes used to prop open clogged arteries. Doctors slip such tubes into arteries after they have been opened with an inflated balloon. The Cook Medical stent is coated with paclitaxel, an anti-cancer drug, to help prevent re-clogging, a common problem with conventional bare-metal stents.
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