The long and winding road of Lipitor

More patients have received a prescription to buy Lipitor than any other medication in the world. It currently ranks as the top selling prescription drug of all time. However, it almost never made it to pharmacies.

Lipitor was not the first cholesterol-lowering statin drug to hit the market. Several preceded it. The Associated Press reports that becaue of this, Lipitor's manufacturer almost never bothered to seek a patent on it, as it can be difficult to convince physicians and patients that a new medication is better than the one they have been using for years.

However, the news source reports that a 1996 study showed that Lipitor can be much more effective than other statins at reducing cholesterol. The drug went on to crush its competition, as doctors and their patients realized that it worked.

Late last year, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, which manufactures Lipitor, lost the patent on the medication. Experts predicted that sales would fall sharply, as more patients would opt for generics. However, the Boston Globe reports that after an initial plunge, sales of the drug have remained steady. The findings suggest that many people are continuing to buy Lipitor.