• The New York Times, Wednesday, June 6, 2007 11:15 AM

In the eight years that diabetes treatment Avandia has been for sale--becoming a $3-billion-a-year worldwide best seller--GlaxoSmithKline's African-American focus in the U.S. has won the company praise in the advertising industry and from some black doctors. They credit the campaigns for putting a friendly face on a drug for a disease that too often goes untreated.

Now that Avandia is dogged by safety questions--a congressional hearing today will address concerns that it may increase the risk of heart attacks--some black advertising executives wonder if Glaxo's advertising strategy could end up working against the company. Competitors such as Byetta--which is marketed by Amylin Pharmaceuticals and Eli Lilly--could benefit if doctors started encouraging patients to drop Avandia.

But some ad industry executives say that because Glaxo has helped raise diabetes awareness in recent years among African-Americans, the company might now have a reservoir of good will that it could draw upon. So far, many doctors seem to be playing wait and see.

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