Novartis reports Phase 3 pelacarsen trial fails to improve cardiovascular outcomes

Novartis said its late-stage Phase 3 trial of the antisense drug pelacarsen did not show a benefit in reducing major cardiovascular events compared with placebo.

The result adds to a recent string of setbacks in cardiovascular outcome studies, following similar failures reported by Novo Nordisk and AstraZeneca in the past two months.

The negative outcome raises concerns for rivals Amgen and Eli Lilly, which are pursuing their own therapies aimed at the same disease pathway, and may slow investor enthusiasm for this class of drugs.

Novartis did not disclose further details about the trial size or safety profile, and said it will review the data to determine next steps.