Working under an initiative called Project Impact announced earlier this year, Madison, New Jersey-based Wyeth reports it is focusing their research and development on six broad therapeutic areas instead of 14 as they had in the past, continuing their R&D policy on drugs already in development and not starting out on new ones.

Wyeth spokesman Michael Lampe said this is not a cost-reduction decision, "the dollars spent and number of personnel won't change."

The company will focus on sophisticated biotech medicines and ailments treated by specialists. The plan is aimed at changing Wyeth's overall strategy and reducing R&D costs, taking into consideration a new drug takes from 12 to 15 years to develop and if successful, actually reaching the market.

Wyeth, which had focused previously on 14 broad therapeutic areas, said its scientists in the early so-called "discovery" stage of research would now focus on inventing drugs in six areas: oncology, inflammation, vaccines, metabolic diseases, musculoskeletal problems and neuroscience, including Alzheimer's disease.

In the vaccine area, Wyeth´s top product is pneumococcal vaccine Prevnar and already in Phase III its successor candidate, Prevnar 13. Prevnar generated over $ 2.11 billion dollars for the company in the first nine months of this year.

The number of specific diseases for which drug-discovery efforts are made will also be halved, to 27 from about 55.

Lampe said Wyeth would no longer attempt to discover female hormone replacement drugs, and instead focus on breast cancer and other tumors.

The company would continue to sell existing products, such as its Premarin pill to treat post-menopausal symptoms, and would work on medicines already in its research pipeline. (The Premarin family of estrogen replacement therapy brought in earnings of $ 852 million dollars in 3Q2008).

Although company biologists and chemists will no longer attempt to discover drugs that treat osteoporosis, a disease now addressed by Premarin, Lampe said they would be working on drugs that help repair bone fractures.

In the biotech area of drugs, for inflammation, Wyeth leads with rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis treatment Enbrel, which had sales of just under $ 2 billion in 3Q2008.