Novartis heart drug pelacarsen fails in clinical trial

Novartis has announced that its experimental heart drug pelacarsen did not work in a large clinical trial. The drug was designed to lower lipoprotein (a), a protein in the blood that is linked to heart disease. Scientists had expected that reducing this protein would protect patients from heart attacks and strokes. However, the trial showed that the drug did not reduce these risks. Many cardiologists were surprised, because earlier research had strongly suggested the approach would succeed. The result is a reminder that lowering a risk marker in the blood does not always mean patients will benefit. The announcement also caused share prices to fall for companies developing similar drugs.