March 31 (Reuters) – Cytokinetics Inc (CYTK.O) said on Friday it will focus on treating heart disease after its amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) drug failed in late-stage research. bottom.
The company’s share price jumped more than 5% as the drug company moved to use resources freed up by the ALS project for a potential heart drug valued at more than $1 billion.
Cytokinetics’ heart disease drug aficamten is “a jewel in the pipeline,” said Oppenheimer analyst Justin Kim.
Analysts say aficamten is a key value driver for the company and could lead to acquisition interest.
This drug is being developed to treat a heart condition called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which causes thickening of the heart muscle and can lead to cardiac arrest. Late-stage data on the drug are expected later this year.
“More than two-thirds of our R&D spending has already gone into the development of aficamten, and that number will rise even more when we consider our other programs,” said CEO Robert Blum.
Earlier in the day, Cytokinetics announced it was halting development of its ALS treatment reldesemtiv after an independent panel review of late-stage trials showed no benefit in patients compared to placebo.
Blum didn’t provide details on how the suspension of the ALS trial will affect the company’s spending in 2023, but said it would help the company expand its cash runway.
Last month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) denied approval of Cytokinetics’ heart failure drug omecamtiv mecarbil after failing to obtain the support of outside regulatory advisors over safety concerns.
Reporting by Khushi Mandwala, Bengaluru Editing by Vinay Dwivedi
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