GlaxoSmithKline Plc (GSK) has stopped a high-profile clinical trial using a novel vaccine to fight lung cancer after deciding it will not be possible to find a sub-group of patients who might benefit.
The decision comes less than two weeks after GSK said the MAGE-A3 therapeutic vaccine did not help patients with non-small cell lung cancer in the Phase III study overall, but it was still looking for improvements among patients with a particular genetic profile.
In the event, scientists analyzing the trial decided there was insufficient treatment effect to pinpoint benefit in such gene-signature patients.
Vincent Brichard, head of immunotherapeutics at GSK Vaccines, who announced the decision on Wednesday, said he was "extremely disappointed" by the result.
Identifying a sub-group for whom MAGE-A3 would work had been considered a long shot by investors. Nonetheless, Citi analyst Andrew Baum said the latest setback removed "important optionality" for future sales and profits.
A second trial testing the vaccine in melanoma, which also failed to help patients overall, will continue to investigate benefits in sub-populations. However, the commercial opportunity in melanoma is only 20 to 30 percent that of lung cancer, according to Citi.
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