DAIICHI SANKYO TO DOUBLE U.S. SALES FORCE

Daiichi Sankyo will more than double its U.S. sales staff to promote several new drugs it is about to bring to market, the company announced.

The move is part of a long-term vision for the company to expand its global presence. Daiichi Sankyo wants to increase its overseas sales ratio to at least 40 percent, the company said this week.

Daiichi Sankyo will add 1,400 employees at its main U.S. facility to reach 2,300 people by early 2010 and seeks $1.65 billion in sales, the company said. Another U.S. unit will go from 50 workers to 350 by 2009 and has a sales goal for that year of $495 million.

The new employees will help boost sales of the highly anticipated drugs in the company's pipeline, Daiichi Sankyo said. The company submitted a new drug application for an antihypertension drug known as CS-8663, a combination of olmesartan and amlodipine, in November 2006.

Other expected high performers include blood-thinner Prasugrel, which Daiichi Sankyo is co-developing and co-marketing with Eli Lilly. The companies have completed patient registration for Phase III trials, and expect the drug to be on the market in late 2008 if it is successful.

Daiichi Sankyo also said it hopes the FDA will approve cholesterol-lowering drug WelChol to treat diabetes and is aiming for a release of the drug for that indication before 2009.