Failed Heart Drug Trials at Novartis and Novo Nordisk Leave Experts Puzzled

what happened

An experimental Novartis treatment aimed at a genetic driver of heart disease did not reduce deaths or non-fatal heart attacks. The drug, pelacarsen, cut levels of the blood particle Lp(a) by 78%, yet over nearly five years in more than 8,300 patients it had no effect on heart attacks, strokes or the need for emergency artery procedures, according to Reuters. Novartis and its partner Ionis Pharmaceuticals had already said in September that the main goal was missed.

A second setback involves Novo Nordisk's ziltivekimab, an anti-inflammatory drug that targets interleukin-6. It lowered inflammation as intended but did not reduce the risk of death, heart attacks or strokes versus placebo. In September, Novo also halted two other late-stage trials of the drug after an independent monitoring committee judged them unlikely to succeed. Some experts suggest the patients were too sick for this approach to work.

why it matters

For investors, the bigger question is whether Lp(a) is a sound therapeutic target at all. Rival treatments from Amgen and Eli Lilly, which use siRNA and lower Lp(a) by about 95%, will now be judged more cautiously. Amgen's Phase 3 results are expected in early 2028 and Lilly's in 2029, Reuters reports.

market impact

Novartis and Novo Nordisk: failed trials weaken hopes for new heart and inflammation drugs

• ▼Novartis shares pressure down — its lead heart candidate showed no benefit, reducing the drug's pipeline value
• ▼Novo Nordisk shares pressure down — a second failed heart study dims hopes for growth beyond its GLP-1 franchises

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