Nymox Pharmaceutical Tanks As Lead Drug Fails To Meet Primary Endpoints In Two Large Studies

November 3, 2014

By Riley McDermid, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff

New Jersey biotech Nymox Pharmaceutical Corporation is seeing a bumpy ride in the capital markets today, after the company announced its promising prostate cancer drug has failed to meet its primary endpoints in two Phase III studies.

Shares of the firm had already fallen 4.3 percent in mid-morning trading on Monday, after a 15 percent drop earlier this year.

The two studies had tested experimental drug NX-1207 for the treatment of BPH, NX02-0017 and NX02-0018 but said in a statement that although the drug met its safety goals, it failed to prove it was more effective than a placebo. The company said that full results would be released at a later date and announced it will hold a conference call for shareholders later Monday.

Nymox’s NX-1207 is intended to treat an enlarged prostate, which can restrict the flow of urine from the bladder and sometimes cause sexual dysfunction. Although it had been the company’s most promising treatment, and could remain effective against types of prostate cancer, its recent trials were not encouraging.

"The two studies failed to meet the pre-specified efficacy endpoints” said Nymox CEO Paul Averback, in a statement. “Drug safety was acceptable. Drug efficacy reached levels similar to earlier studies but was not statistically significant in comparison to the placebo control due to a higher placebo response than in earlier NX-1207 studies and in other placebo-controlled BPH studies.”

“The compound remains promising for low grade localized prostate cancer where the Phase 2 results showed evidence that NX-1207 treatment had a positive effect on biopsy results and clinical and biochemical progression," added Averback.