After a clinical trial codenamed JUPITER, AstraZeneca’s anti-cholesterol drug, Crestor, could revolutionise the way heart disease is treated, say experts.

The trial was designed to see if Crestor could help people with normal levels of cholesterol but high levels of a protein connected to inflammation and risk of heart disease. About 18,000 people from 26 different countries participated in the trial and they all had acceptable levels of cholesterol and high levels of the inflammation marker, C-reactive protein (CRP). While half were put on the drug, the other were on a placebo. It was found that the combined risk of heart attack, stroke and heart-related death fell by nearly fifty per cent in the group taking Crestor.

Crestor which involves rosuvastation, is part of a group of drugs called statins which are already prescribed to people with high cholesterol. The overwhelmingly positive results of the trial which was brought to a close early due to conclusive results could mean that the drug will be given to many more people who have no obvious risk of heart disease. Indeed, AstraZeneca hopes that Crestor can be used as a preventative medicine, particularly in the U.S. where the heart disease causes the highest number of deaths.

The company’s shares rose recently by 86p, or 3.2%, to £27.70 in connection with the results of the trial which was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Analysts in the pharmaceutical industry sector have always tipped that Crestor would prove a key drug in AstraZeneca’s portfolio. A new report finds that AstraZeneca’s key products will remain Crestor and Seroquel. It says both drugs are expected to challenge for leadership within their respective markets.