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 The Phase III study had been halted early after the drug showed no
efficacy improvements over low-dose aspirin, Bayer said in a
statement late on Thursday.
The German drugmaker last year raised its annual peak sales estimate
for Xarelto to more than 5 billion euros ($5.3 billion).
The study was evaluating the efficacy and safety of Xarelto, also
known as rivaroxaban, for the secondary prevention of stroke and
systemic embolism in patients with a recent embolic stroke of
undetermined source.
"While bleeding rates were low overall, an increase in bleeding was
observed in the rivaroxaban arm compared to the low dose aspirin
arm," Bayer said in its statement.
The drug is already approved for a number of cardiovascular
conditions and prevention of strokes caused by a type of irregular
heart beat common among the elderly is the main profit driver.
Earlier this year, a successful trial on the prevention of
potentially deadly strokes and heart attacks in patients with severe
atherosclerosis raised the prospect of billions more in sales.
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Xarelto was jointly developed by Bayer and Johnson & Johnson, which
owns the U.S. rights to the drug.
Bayer said the trial has no bearing on the positive benefits of
Xarelto for other uses for which it is currently licensed.
(Reporting by Victoria Bryan and Ludwig Burger; Editing by
Muralikumar Anantharaman and Keith Weir)
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