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NEW YORK, Apr 04, 2005 (United Press International via COMTEX) -- With growing concerns about obesity, U.S. drug makers are spending billions to find the magic cure.
An estimated 200 possibilities are now in the research pipeline or being tested by patients at dozens of clinics, a spokesman for MedMarket Diligence, a health care research firm, told the International Herald Tribune.
"I've had people crying on the phone," said Heather Hausberger, a dietitian who screens applicants for one of the experimental drugs. "They've tried everything. Nothing seems to work. A lot of people are looking for the quick fix, the magic pill."
Some drug makers say they are tackling fat in response to U.S. public health warnings of a national obesity epidemic -- one that has been linked to diabetes, heart disease and other disorders and now accounts for more than $100 billion of the United States' $1.8 trillion annual medical bill, the report said.
Industry forecasters say an effective weight-loss drug could have annual sales far surpassing the current best-selling drug, the cholesterol treatment Lipitor, which reached $12 billion last year.
Copyright 2005 by United Press International.
