STAT+: Novartis’ experimental cardiovascular drug fails a pivotal study — SkimNews
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- Novartis said Friday that pelacarsen failed the Phase 3 HORIZON trial, missing the primary endpoint of reducing cardiovascular death, heart attacks, or stroke versus placebo.
- Earlier trials had shown pelacarsen could drastically lower Lp(a), a lipid-and-protein particle whose elevated concentrations are linked to severe heart problems.
- Pelacarsen had been "closely watched" as a leading test of whether lowering Lp(a) would translate into fewer cardiovascular events — and the HORIZON readout answered no.
- The result is a major blow to Novartis and to broader drug-development efforts targeting Lp(a) as a common heart disease risk factor.
Why it matters: Novartis had bet that drastically lowering Lp(a) would translate into fewer heart attacks, strokes, and cardiovascular deaths — and the Phase 3 HORIZON trial says it doesn't. The source calls the failure a major blow to both Novartis and to broader drug-development efforts targeting Lp(a) as a common cardiovascular risk factor, calling into question whether reducing the biomarker alone moves clinical outcomes.
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