AstraZeneca PLC (AZN), BTG plc (BGC.L) Scrap Sepsis Drug as Trial Fails

8/8/2012 7:27:52 AM

An experimental drug for severe sepsis from AstraZeneca and BTG failed to help patients in a crucial mid-stage clinical trial and its development will now be halted, BTG said on Wednesday. Sepsis occurs when the body's immune system sets off a chain reaction and over-reacts to an infection, damaging vital organs. The news is a blow for both companies' drug pipelines, although the development of CytoFab, or AZD9773, was always viewed by analysts as risky. There are big potential rewards for a successful medicine to treat sepsis, which affects around 3 million people a year worldwide and has a 30 percent mortality rate. The drug industry, however, is littered with past failures in the area.

Read at Reuters

Read at Guardian

Read at Fox News

Read at InPharm.com

Read at Wall Street Journal

Read Article at

Related Companies

News Categories

• Reuters

• Guardian

• Fox News

• InPharm.com