They're testing if a drug called Evolocumab, given as a shot every two weeks, can help prevent serious heart problems in people with artery disease or high-risk diabetes who haven't had a heart attack or stroke yet.

Taking a drug called evolocumab every two weeks is just as safe as taking a fake pill (placebo) for people with certain heart risks — there’s no real difference in side effects after nearly 5 years.

For people with diabetes or clogged arteries who haven’t had a heart attack or stroke yet, taking a drug called evolocumab every two weeks can lower their chance of having a first heart attack, stroke, or heart-related death by about 25% over nearly 5 years.

For people at high risk for heart problems because of diabetes or clogged arteries, taking a drug called evolocumab every two weeks can lower their chances of having a heart attack, stroke, or needing heart surgery by about 1 in 5 over nearly 5 years, compared to those who don’t take it.

A drug called evolocumab, when given every two weeks, cuts bad cholesterol by more than 60% in people at high risk for heart problems — and that result has shown up consistently in several major studies.

For people with diabetes who are at high heart risk but don’t yet have major artery blockages, adding a drug called evolocumab to their usual cholesterol medicine cuts their chance of heart attack, stroke, or heart-related death by about a third over nearly 5 years.