By Sam Boughedda
Investing.com — Shares of Erytech Pharma SA ADR (NASDAQ:ERYP) dropped 39% on Monday after it reported "disappointing" results from its Phase 3 clinical trial evaluating eryaspase as a treatment for pancreatic cancer.
The company said the trial failed to meet its primary endpoint of overall survival in patients treated with the drug compared to those treated with chemotherapy alone.
The average overall survival for patients treated with eryaspase plus chemotherapy was 7.5 months compared to 6.7 months for those treated with just chemotherapy.
"Pancreatic cancer is a very challenging, heterogeneous disease, and the results of the TRYbeCA-1 Phase 3 trial have now also encountered this significant hurdle." said Dr Iman El Hariry, the company's chief medical officer.
"It is very disappointing that the clinical benefit eryaspase demonstrated in the Phase 2 trial was not confirmed; however, the study has addressed important questions in the management of pancreatic cancer patients," added El Hariry.
While disappointing, the company said that key secondary endpoints of the trial, including progression-free survival, disease control rate, and objective response rate, showed benefits in favor of eryaspase.