STAT+: Latigo reports mid-stage success for would-be rival to Vertex’s pain drug Journavx
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- Latigo Biotherapeutics published positive Phase 2 data Wednesday for LTG-001, an oral non-opioid pain drug positioned to rival Vertex's already-marketed Journavx
- The trial enrolled 343 patients who had undergone abdominoplasty (tummy tuck) surgery and randomized them to high-dose LTG-001, low-dose LTG-001, placebo, or acetaminophen plus the opioid hydrocodone
- Both doses of LTG-001 achieved statistically significant pain relief compared with placebo at the 48-hour mark
- High-dose LTG-001 patients were significantly less likely to take rescue oxycodone for additional pain management than placebo recipients, even though all groups could opt in
- LTG-001 was generally safe and well tolerated, with overall adverse event rates actually higher in the placebo arm than in either treatment arm
- Treatment-specific side effects were more common than placebo: 7% of high-dose patients had fever (vs 2% on placebo) and 6% experienced lightheadedness (vs 1% on placebo)
Why it matters: Latigo's data intensifies competition in a non-opioid pain space that Vertex entered with Journavx's approval — if Phase 3 confirms statistically significant pain relief and reduced opioid rescue use across 343 patients, a credible second entrant could crack open what the source describes as a multibillion-dollar market long written off as a drug-discovery graveyard.
