Bayer Says Its Drug Linked to 52 Deaths

Bayer said Monday that its pulled Baycol anti-cholesterol drug may be linked to 52 deaths and that two rivals have come forward since the company said the voluntary recall may force it to seek a partner for its drug unit.

Baycol is one of a popular family of drugs called statins that have been linked to rare reports of a side effect called rhabdomyolysis, a life-threatening condition in which muscle cells are destroyed and released into the bloodstream.

The German chemical and pharmaceutical giant said the chances are slim that the drug, known as Lipobay outside the United States, will return to the market.

“If the use of this medicine has resulted in damage to health, that is something we deeply regret,” Bayer Chief Executive Manfred Schneider said Monday. “We do everything we can to eliminate such risks,” he said, stressing that there is still no proof that the drug caused the deaths.

Meanwhile, the German Health Ministry said it ordered a report from regulators on whether the drug should have been recalled earlier. The findings are to be released Thursday.

The company pulled Baycol on Wednesday.

Schneider pledged to overhaul his strategy, sparking speculation the company will seek a joint venture or sell the unit.

“We will now examine what strategy we adopt, what new targets we set ourselves and how we achieve them--on our own or in partnerships,” he said.

He didn’t identify the two companies that approached Bayer or indicate what they proposed.

Bayer’s American depositary receipts slipped 10 cents on Monday to $32.15.

Analysts say U.S. rivals such as Merck & Co. and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. or European firms such as GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi-Synthelabo may be interested in Bayer’s drug unit.

The company, which also has a substantial chemicals unit, plans to list its shares in New York next month.