Corcept’s overall survival data “look competitive” with AbbVie’s Elahere and Merck’s blockbuster Keytruda, Truist Securities said Thursday.
Corcept Therapeutics’ experimental glucocorticoid receptor blocker relacorilant, when used alongside chemotherapy, significantly improved overall survival in a late-stage study of platinum-resistant ovarian cancer.
Patients treated in the Phase III ROSELLA study with Corcept’s relacorilant plus nab-paclitaxel saw a 35% drop in the risk of death from all causes as compared with those on chemotherapy alone, according to a Thursday news release. Median overall survival (OS) in those given the combo regimen hit 16 months versus 11.9 months in controls. Truist Securities, in a note the same day, called this survival benefit “robust.”
These findings, the analysts added, “look competitive” with the 32% OS benefit reported for AbbVie’s folate receptor antagonist Elahere, and with the 24% for Merck’s blockbuster PD-1 inhibitor Keytruda. Relacorilant’s reduction in death risk, Truist continued, represents a “meaningful advance in [platinum-resistant ovarian cancer] where chemotherapy historically delivers only modest survival gains.”
Shares of Corcept were up 6.5% to $43.98 at close of trading on Friday.
In March last year, interim data from the ROSELLA trial demonstrated that the relacorilant regimen improved progression-free survival by 30% versus nab-paclitaxel alone—a benefit that was statistically significant.
Corcept also released safety findings on Thursday, revealing that toxicities in patients treated with the relacorilant combo were comparable to those in the chemotherapy control arm. Truist particularly found the safety data encouraging, noting that there was “no added toxicity even in a heavily pre-treated population.”
“This tolerability advantage materially improves the regimen’s real-world competitiveness,” the analysts added.
This competitive edge is particularly pertinent to relacorilant as it nears the market. In September last year, the FDA accepted Corcept’s new drug application for the drug in platinum-resistant ovarian cancer, with a decision expected by July 11.
Designed to be taken orally, relacorilant is a selective glucocorticoid receptor blocker that helps modulate the activity of the stress hormone cortisol, which is linked to a variety of diseases, including cancer.
This mechanism of action positions relacorilant as a potential treatment to other conditions characterized by cortisol dysregulation. In December 2024, Corcept filed an approval application for the drug in hypercortisolim, characterized by hypertension, heightened blood sugar and type 2 diabetes. The FDA rejected the bid last month, noting that it needed additional evidence to establish a favorable risk-benefit profile for the drug.
