Editing Pfizer (section)

=== 2000–2010: Further expansion ===
In 2001, [[Henry McKinnell]] became [[chief executive officer]] of the company, replacing [[William C. Steere, Jr.]]<ref name="longshot">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/29/business/29pfizer.html |title=A Long Shot Becomes Pfizer's Latest Chief Executive |first=Alex |last=Berenson |authorlink=Alex Berenson |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=July 29, 2006 |url-access=limited}}</ref>

In 2002, The [[Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation]] purchased stock in Pfizer.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Bank |first1=David |last2=Buckman |first2=Rebecca |date=2002-05-17 |title=Gates Foundation Buys Stakes in Drug Makers |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB1021577629748680000 |access-date=2022-06-14 |issn=0099-9660}}</ref>

In 2004, the company received approval for Lyrica ([[pregabalin]]), an [[anticonvulsant]] and [[anxiolytic]] medication used to treat [[epilepsy]], [[neuropathic pain]], [[fibromyalgia]], [[restless leg syndrome]], and [[generalized anxiety disorder]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Pregabalin |url=https://www.drugs.com/monograph/pregabalin.html |publisher=[[American Society of Health-System Pharmacists]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Frampton |first1=James E. |title=Pregabalin: A Review of its Use in Adults with Generalized Anxiety Disorder |journal=CNS Drugs |date=September 2014 |volume=28 |issue=9 |pages=835–854 |doi=10.1007/s40263-014-0192-0 |pmid=25149863 |s2cid=5349255}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Iftikhar |first1=I. H. |last2=Alghothani |first2=L. |last3=Trotti |first3=L. M. |title=Gabapentin enacarbil, pregabalin and rotigotine are equally effective in restless legs syndrome: a comparative meta-analysis |journal=[[European Journal of Neurology]] |date=December 2017 |volume=24 |issue=12 |pages=1446–1456 |doi=10.1111/ene.13449 |pmid=28888061 |s2cid=22262972}}</ref> The United States patent on Lyrica was challenged by generic manufacturers and was upheld in 2014, extending the expiration date to 2018.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Decker |first=Susan |date=February 6, 2014 |title=Pfizer Wins Ruling to Block Generic Lyrica Until 2018 |work=[[Bloomberg News]] |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-02-06/pfizer-wins-ruling-to-block-generic-lyrica-until-2018.html |url-access=subscription}}</ref>

In July 2006, [[Jeff Kindler]] was named [[chief executive officer]] of the company, replacing [[Henry McKinnell]].<ref name="longshot" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=July 28, 2006 |title=Pfizer names new CEO |work=[[CNN]] |url=https://money.cnn.com/2006/07/28/news/companies/pfizer_ceo/index.htm}}</ref>

On December 3, 2006, Pfizer ceased development of [[torcetrapib]], a drug that increases production of [[high density lipoprotein|HDL]], which reduces [[low density lipoprotein|LDL]] thought to be correlated to heart disease. During a [[Phase III clinical trial]] involving 15,000 patients, more deaths than expected occurred in the group that took the medicine, and the [[mortality rate]] of patients taking the combination of torcetrapib and Lipitor (82 deaths during the study) was 60% higher than those taking Lipitor alone (52 deaths during the study). Lipitor alone was not implicated in the results, but Pfizer lost nearly $1{{nbsp}}billion developing the failed drug and its stock price dropped 11% on the day of the announcement.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Berenson |first1=Alex |last2=Pollack |first2=Andrew |date=December 5, 2006 |title=Pfizer Shares Plummet on Loss of a Promising Heart Drug |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/05/health/05pfizer.html |url-access=limited}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Berenson |first=Alex |date=December 3, 2006 |title=Pfizer Ends Studies on Drug for Heart Disease |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/03/health/03pfizer.html |url-access=limited |authorlink=Alex Berenson}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Agovino |first=Theresa |date=December 3, 2006 |title=Pfizer ends cholesterol drug development |publisher=[[The Seattle Times]] |agency=[[Associated Press]] |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/cholesterol-drug-trials-are-halted/}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Tanne |first1=Janice Hopkins |title=Pfizer stops clinical trials of heart drug |journal=BMJ |date=16 December 2006 |volume=333 |issue=7581 |pages=1237.2–1237 |doi=10.1136/bmj.39059.438044.DB |pmid=17170401 |pmc=1702474}}</ref>

Between 2007 and 2010, Pfizer spent $3.3{{nbsp}}million on investigations and legal fees and recovered about $5.1{{nbsp}}million, and had another $5{{nbsp}}million of pending recoveries from civil lawsuits against makers of [[counterfeit]] prescription drugs. Pfizer has hired customs and narcotics experts worldwide to track down fakes and assemble evidence that can be used to pursue civil suits for [[trademark infringement]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bennett |first=Simeon |date=July 8, 2010 |title=Pfizer: Civil Suits for Drug Counterfeiters |work=[[Bloomberg Businessweek]] |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2010-07-08/pfizer-civil-suits-for-drug-counterfeiters |url-access=limited}}</ref>

In July 2008, Pfizer announced 275 job cuts at its manufacturing facility in [[Portage, Michigan]]. Portage was previously the world headquarters of [[Upjohn Company]], which had been acquired as part of Pharmacia.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Jones |first=Al |date=July 15, 2008 |title=Pfizer job cuts don't equal a reduction in work load, says company spokesman |work=[[Booth Newspapers]] |url=https://www.mlive.com/kzgazette/2008/07/pfizer_job_cuts_dont_equal_a_r.html}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite news |date=April 16, 2003 |title=It's official: Pfizer buys Pharmacia |work=[[CNN]] |url=https://money.cnn.com/2003/04/16/news/companies/pfizer_pharma/}}</ref>

==== Acquisitions and mergers ====
In June 2000, Pfizer acquired Warner-Lambert outright for $116{{nbsp}}billion. To satisfy conditions imposed by antitrust regulators at the [[Federal Trade Commission]], Pfizer sold off or transferred stakes in several minor products, including RID (a shampoo for treatment of [[Head lice infestation|head lice]], sold to [[Bayer]]) and Warner-Lambert's antidepressant [[Celexa]] (which competes with Zoloft).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hensley |first=Scott |date=June 20, 2000 |title=Pfizer Completes Stormy Takeover Of Warner-Lambert for $116 Billion |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB961456765639278103 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> The acquisition created what was, at the time, the second-largest pharmaceutical company worldwide.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Campbell |first=Todd |date=May 15, 2017 |title=Here are the 7 biggest mergers of all time |publisher=[[Business Insider]] |agency=[[The Motley Fool]] |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/here-are-the-7-biggest-mergers-of-all-time-2017-5#6-warner-lambert-warms-up-to-pfizer-89-billion-2}}</ref>

In 2003, Pfizer merged with [[Pharmacia]], and in the process acquired [[G.D. Searle, LLC|Searle]] and [[SUGEN]]. Searle had developed Flagyl ([[metronidazole]]), a [[nitroimidazole]] antibiotic medication used particularly for [[anaerobe|anaerobic]] [[bacterium|bacteria]] and [[protozoa]].<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=Metronidazole Monograph for Professionals |url=https://www.drugs.com/monograph/metronidazole.html |publisher=[[Drugs.com]]}}</ref> Searle also developed [[celecoxib]] (Celebrex) a [[COX-2 inhibitor]] and [[nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug]] (NSAID) used to treat the [[pain]] and [[inflammation]] in [[osteoarthritis]], [[acute pain]] in adults, [[rheumatoid arthritis]], [[ankylosing spondylitis]], [[painful menstruation]], and [[juvenile rheumatoid arthritis]].<ref>{{cite web |date=11 November 2019 |title=Celecoxib Monograph for Professionals |url=https://www.drugs.com/monograph/celecoxib.html |website=Drugs.com |publisher=American Society of Health-System Pharmacists}}</ref> [[SUGEN]], a company focused on [[protein kinase]] inhibitors, had pioneered the use of ATP-mimetic small molecules to block [[signal transduction]]. The [[SUGEN]] facility was shut down in 2003 by Pfizer, with the loss of more than 300 jobs, and several programs were transferred to Pfizer. These included [[sunitinib]] (Sutent), a cancer medication which was approved for human use by the FDA in January 2006.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2005-11-20/the-spirit-of-a-startup-lives-on |title=The Spirit Of A Startup Lives On |work=[[Bloomberg Businessweek]] |date=November 21, 2005}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/2003/04/28/daily24.html |title=Pfizer expects to shutter South City biotech outpost |work=[[American City Business Journals]] |date=April 30, 2003}}</ref> A related compound, SU11654 ([[Toceranib]]), was also approved for [[cancer in dogs]], and the [[ALK inhibitor]] [[Crizotinib]] also grew out of a SUGEN program.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424053111904009304576532892704206326 |title=FDA Approves Pfizer Lung-Cancer Drug |first=Jonathan D. |last=Rockoff |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |date=August 26, 2011 |url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |doi=10.1016/B978-0-12-409547-2.12391-1 |chapter=Selective Kinase Inhibitors in Cancer |title=Comprehensive Medicinal Chemistry III |year=2017 |last1=Mortlock |first1=A.A. |last2=Wilson |first2=D.M. |last3=Kettle |first3=J.G. |last4=Goldberg |first4=F.W. |last5=Foote |first5=K.M. |pages=39–75 |isbn=978-0-12-803201-5}}</ref>

In October 2006, the company announced it would acquire PowerMed.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Barriaux |first=Marianne |date=October 9, 2006 |title=Pfizer buys vaccine developer PowderMed |work=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2006/oct/09/money5}}</ref>

On October 15, 2009, Pfizer acquired [[Wyeth]] for $68{{nbsp}}billion in cash and stock, including the assumption of debt, making Pfizer the largest pharmaceutical company in the world.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Sorkin |first1=Andrew Ross |last2=Wilson |first2=Duff |date=January 25, 2009 |title=Pfizer Agrees to Pay $68 Billion for Rival Drug Maker Wyeth |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/26/business/26drug.html |url-access=limited |issn=0362-4331 |authorlink1=Andrew Ross Sorkin |authorlink2=Duff Wilson}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=October 15, 2009 |title=Pfizer completes $67 billion deal for rival Wyeth |work=[[Reuters]] |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/instant-article/idUSTRE59E4S320091015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Karnitschnig |first1=Matthew |last2=Rockoff |first2=Jonathan D. |date=January 23, 2009 |title=Pfizer in Talks to Buy Wyeth |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB123268511212809429 |url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref name="worst">{{Cite news |last=Edwards |first=Jim |date=January 23, 2009 |title=The Pfizer–Wyeth Deal Worst-Case Scenario |work=[[CBS News]] |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-pfizer-wyeth-deal-worst-case-scenario/}}</ref><ref name="wyethpr">{{Cite press release |title=PFIZER COMPLETES ACQUISITION OF WYETH |url=https://www.pfizer.com/news/press-release/press-release-detail/pfizer_completes_acquisition_of_wyeth |publisher=Pfizer |date=October 14, 2009}}</ref> The acquisition of Wyeth provided Pfizer with a [[pneumococcal conjugate vaccine]], trademarked [[Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine#Prevnar|Prevnar 13]]; this is used for the prevention of invasive pneumococcal infections. The introduction of the original, 7-valent version of the vaccine, developed by [[Wyeth]] in February 2000, led to a 75% reduction in the incidence of invasive pneumococcal infections among children under age{{nbsp}}5 in the United States. Pfizer introduced an improved version of the vaccine in 2010, for which it was granted a patent in India in 2017. Prevnar 13 provides coverage of 13 bacterial variants, expanding beyond the original 7-valent version.<ref name="wyethpr" /> By 2012, the rate of invasive infections among children under age{{spaces}}5 had been reduced by an additional 50%.<ref name="cdc.gov">{{Cite web |date=April 5, 2019 |title=CDC – ABCs: Surveillance Reports main page – Active Bacterial Core surveillance |url=https://www.cdc.gov/abcs/reports-findings/surv-reports.html}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Herper |first=Matthew |date=August 24, 2020 |title=In the race for a Covid-19 vaccine, Pfizer turns to a scientist with a history of defying skeptics – and getting results |url=https://www.statnews.com/2020/08/24/pfizer-edge-in-the-race-for-a-covid-19-vaccine-could-be-a-scientist-with-two-best-sellers-to-her-credit/ |website=[[Stat (website)|Stat]]}}</ref>