Johnson and Johnson touts new drugs

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J., May 27 (UPI) -- New Jersey's Johnson & Johnson says it has 17 new medicines in advanced stages of clinical testing or awaiting regulatory approval.

That's a big improvement of the last such report, in 2001, when the company said it had only two drugs at the same stage of development, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

The drugmaker attributes its improved output to improved research productivity, a slew of acquisitions and aggressive licensing. The experimental drugs treat illnesses that include the AIDS virus and various cancers.

Other prospects include dapoxetine, a pill for premature ejaculation; paliperidone, an antipsychotic related to Risperdal; and Yondelis, for soft-tissue sarcoma.