SEC Investigating Amgen

Drug maker Amgen Inc. said it has received an informal inquiry from the Securities and Exchange Commission seeking additional information about a study of its anemia drug, Aranesp. The SEC asked the Thousand Oaks company to provide information about a study launched last year to determine Aranesp’s possibility as a treatment for head and neck cancer. Researchers last fall stopped that study after determining it would likely not have a positive outcome. Amgen said it plans to comply with the request. In January, Amgen said a study of Aranesp found people with anemia caused by cancer taking the drug had a higher risk of death.