AstraZeneca aborts Galida development

AstraZeneca has announced it is to discontinue the development of Galida, a treatment designed to combat the symptoms associated with type-2 diabetes. The company said that following analysis of data from phase III and phase II trials, the overall benefit to risk ratio was no better than some equivalent drugs already on the market.

Shares in AstraZeneca dipped by 21 pence yesterday as the news broke – the decision has left the UK’s second largest drug manufacturer with one less product in its pipeline.

The company said that the serum levels of creatinine were higher than expected during the trials, which was a factor central to its decision to abort further studies. AstraZeneca said that there was no evidence of resulting kidney toxicity and that patients who used the drug on trial should not be immediately worried with safety concerns. It added that all trials would close and that the 2,245 patients testing Galida should speak to their physician about seeking alternative treatment.

AstraZeneca’s chief executive officer, David Brennan remarked: “We have acknowledged that Galida was in a class with a high degree of uncertainty and the decision to discontinue is disappointing.”

“We remain committed to further strengthening AstraZeneca?s pipeline of new medicines both from our own research efforts and through the continued pursuit of external opportunities to enhance our business,” he added.

The company said it would make the full findings of the trials available for analysis. Last week, AstraZeneca announced “strong” first-quarterly results, highlighting a sales growth of 12 per cent. However, some investors have expressed worries over AstraZeneca’s pipeline, after the withdrawals of Iressa in the EU and Exanta, once touted as the successor to warfarin, as well as Galida currently.

© Adfero Ltd