Johnson & Johnson Cuts 130 Jobs After Alzheimer Drug Fails
Johnson & Johnson | Jobs at Johnson & Johnson
This was expected, yes? Two months after reporting that a pair of clinical trials testing an Alzheimer’s compound failed to meet primary endpoints, Johnson & Johnson is eliminating about 130 positions, mostly from its Janssen Alzheimer Immunotherapy office in South San Francisco, California, according to a state notice. In an e-mail, a spokeswoman confirms that the “restructuring” and job cuts are due to the “negative clinical trial results announced in August of the bapineuzumab Phase III studies and the decision to discontinue development of bapineuzumab in mild-to-moderate Alzheimer’s disease.” The state notice lists 119 jobs to be eliminated from that office. At the moment, the unit employs about 200 people and also has a facility in Dublin, Ireland. The job cuts are hardly unexpected in light of the decision to halt clinical work, except for follow-up evaluations and final data analyses. In fact, preliminary results reported in 2008 suggested little room for optimism (see this), although many patients and investors held out hope that the compound would offer a pleasant surprise, despite the odds.
This was expected, yes? Two months after reporting that a pair of clinical trials testing an Alzheimer’s compound failed to meet primary endpoints, Johnson & Johnson is eliminating about 130 positions, mostly from its Janssen Alzheimer Immunotherapy office in South San Francisco, California, according to a state notice. In an e-mail, a spokeswoman confirms that the “restructuring” and job cuts are due to the “negative clinical trial results announced in August of the bapineuzumab Phase III studies and the decision to discontinue development of bapineuzumab in mild-to-moderate Alzheimer’s disease.” The state notice lists 119 jobs to be eliminated from that office. At the moment, the unit employs about 200 people and also has a facility in Dublin, Ireland. The job cuts are hardly unexpected in light of the decision to halt clinical work, except for follow-up evaluations and final data analyses. In fact, preliminary results reported in 2008 suggested little room for optimism (see this), although many patients and investors held out hope that the compound would offer a pleasant surprise, despite the odds.