(Yicai) Oct. 17 -- Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis’ Leqvio (inclisiran) is in short supply after doctors started prescribing the cholesterol drug in China last week, according to a cardiology expert.

The source did not disclose to Yicai how long the wait is for the first small interfering RNA therapy to lower low-density lipoprotein, also known as ‘bad’ cholesterol. Novartis China has not told Yicai more details about the supply of the novel drug.

Clinical trials show that Leqvio can cut LDL by more than 50 percent in people with heart disease or at increased risk of heart disease, offering an alternative to statins. China approved the medicine in August, nine months after the application was submitted. The drug was permitted to enter the European market in December 2020 and the United States a year after that.

Patients need two injections of Leqvio per year after the initial two doses and each of them costs CNY9,988 (USD1,365) in China, or less than half of the price in the US.

Editor: Emmi Laine