Astellas is continuing its Veozah marketing blitz, signing up to air an ad for the drug just before kickoff in the upcoming Super Bowl to push the treatment of menopause-related vasomotor symptoms (VMS).
Jill Jaroch, senior director of women’s health at Astellas, called the Super Bowl “an incredible platform to showcase the different types of hot flash moments women in midlife may experience.” Almost half of NFL fans are women (PDF), a higher proportion than in other sports, and Jaroch said the other half “likely know or live with someone who has experienced or is experiencing moderate to severe VMS.”
Astellas is running a new cut of the “Fewer Hot Flashes, More Not Flashes” ad that it began showing on TV in October. The Super Bowl, which was watched by 115 million people last year, provides Astellas with the chance to bring its message to a larger audience. This year’s event will take place Feb. 11.
“We hope viewers walk away with greater awareness of moderate to severe VMS due to menopause and Veozah. We want women to feel acknowledged, validated and, most importantly, empowered to talk openly about their experiences and to have more informed discussions with their healthcare providers about whether Veozah is right for them,” Jaroch said.
Astellas is running a branded ad at the Super Bowl one year after using the event to build awareness of VMS ahead of the approval of Veozah. Last year, the company ran its “Heat on the Street” disease state awareness campaign at the Super Bowl, again using a TV spot that launched the previous October.
The Super Bowl disease awareness ad received “positive feedback, especially from women,” Jaroch said. And, having won FDA approval three months after the 2023 event, Astellas is returning as it seeks to get Veozah off to a fast start and capitalize on a potentially short lead over its closest rival. Bayer plans to file for FDA approval of a VMS drug candidate on the strength of phase 3 data it reported last month.
Veozah sales hit (PDF) 1.3 billion Japanese yen ($8.8 million) over the first six months of Astellas’ financial year.