Inflamed Hearts: Heart attacks are caused by inflammation of blood vessels. A tiny company tries to reduce the swelling.

Americans' arteries are not just clogged--they're swollen. Wildly popular drugs like Lipitor and Zocor cut down on deaths from heart attacks and strokes by lowering blood cholesterol, but they're not enough. Despite them, cardiovascular disease kills 946,00 Americans every year. "If we put these drugs in tap water, cardiovascular disease would still be a leading cause of death," says Steven E. Nissen, a cardiologist at the Cleveland Clinic. Half of all hart disease patients don't even …

…about AtheroGenics' chances but points out that the new trial is a big jump from the company's previous studies. Proving that a pill can extend lives is far trickier than showing it can keep vessels from reclosing. And AtheroGenics, a tiny firm with no revenue and only $74 million in cash, needs the backing of a big drug company. A partnership with Schering-Plough failed, in part, Medford says, because he wanted to move faster than Schering.