Maybe it’s the rarefied Davos air or the long-range mountain views, but Novartis ( $NVS ) CEO Joe Jimenez is feeling optimistic about the post- Diovan future. After the Swiss drugmaker loses patent protection on the blood-pressure blockbuster later this year, other products will actually fill the gap, he told Barron’s at the World Economic Forum. And he’s not even talking up yet-to-be-approved drug candidates, but meds that are already on the market. Seven Novartis drugs have blockbuster potential, Jimenez says, including the diabetes drug Galvus , with $700 million in 2011, and the cancer treatment Tasigna , which grew?about 40% for the year. “These are drugs that we launched two or three years ago and continue to grow at 30%, 40%, 50% a year,” he told the business weekly. “These are the drugs that have enabled me to say sales for ’12 [are] in line with ’11, despite the fact that we have $2.5 billion of generic erosion.” Back to that long view. Jimenez sees an upswing past that Diovan loss: “Once we are out from under that in about six quarters, the company should return to growth,” he said. – read the Barron’s piece Special Report: Novartis – 10 Largest U.S. Patent Losses Related Articles: Jimenez aims to keep off-patent Diovan in blockbuster territory Novartis nabs Chinese OK for Lucentis, launches Galvus It’s final: Tasigna in, Sprycel out in NICE guidelines
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Jimenez counts on 7 drugs to take Novartis past Diovan