Heart health statistics are startling. Not only is heart disease the leading cause of death in the United States, it also claims the life of one person every 33 seconds. Plus, the estimated global annual economic cost of heart failure is now up to $108 billion and is only set to grow. But that could soon change for the better thanks to companies, like Cardiol Therapeutics (NASDAQ: CRDL), Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT), Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ: GILD), Medtronic (NYSE: MDT) and Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX).
Look at Cardiol Therapeutics, for example. At the moment, the company is developing novel therapeutic approaches for patients with underserved heart issues, such as acute myocarditis and recurrent pericarditis.
While both of those medical issues are debilitating, there are no affordable and effective treatments, which creates an urgent medical need for Cardiol Therapeutics’ CardioRx™ – an oral solution in clinical development for the use in the treatment of health disease. Even better, the treatment is promising, with the US FDA granting Orphan Drug Designation. That designation helps “fast track” the treatment through the FDA. It also makes the treatment eligible for US FDA Orphan Drug Designation in acute myocarditis.
CardioRx Clinical Study Results Have Been Favorable
Cardiol Therapeutics, a clinical-stage life sciences company focused on the research and clinical development of anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrotic therapies for the treatment of heart disease, today reported clinical results from its Phase II open-label MAvERIC-Pilot study investigating the impact of CardiolRx™ administered to patients with symptomatic recurrent pericarditis. The data showed that the marked improvements in both pericarditis pain and inflammation, previously reported at the 8-week primary endpoint, were maintained throughout the extension period of the 26-week study. The data were included in an oral presentation as part of the Laennec Clinician-Educator Award & Lecture at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions 2024.
Dr. S. Allen Luis, Co-Director of the Pericardial Diseases Clinic and Associate Professor of Medicine in the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine at the Mayo Clinic, presented on behalf of the MAvERIC-Pilot investigators. These findings support the initiation of a Phase III trial (MAVERIC-3), designed to assess CardiolRx™ for the treatment of pericarditis patients to prevent recurrence. The MAVERIC-3 trial is expected to run in parallel with the recently announced MAVERIC-2 Phase II/III trial designed to evaluate the impact of CardiolRx™ in recurrent pericarditis patients following cessation of interleukin-1 blocker therapy.
“The data reported today show that patients enrolled in MAvERIC-Pilot, despite the severity of their disease, experienced clinically relevant and rapid reductions in both their pericarditis pain and C-reactive protein levels that were maintained throughout the study. In addition, results demonstrated a substantial reduction in pericarditis episodes per year as compared to the patients’ historical event rate prior to the study. Importantly, treatment was shown to be safe and well tolerated in a population who presented with significant disease burden,” said Dr. S. Allen Luis, Co-Director of the Pericardial Diseases Clinic and Associate Professor of Medicine in the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine at the Mayo Clinic. “I look forward to further investigation in the upcoming Phase II/III and Phase III clinical trials.”
The MAvERIC-Pilot study enrolled 27 participants (average age 53 years; 67% female) at eight clinical sites across the United States. Average disease duration and the number of pericarditis episodes per year prior to trial entry were 2.7 years and 5.8 events per year, respectively. Baseline pericarditis pain score averaged 5.8 out of 10 and the C-reactive protein (“CRP”) level averaged 2.0 mg/dL. In addition to pericarditis chest pain, other manifestations of pericarditis-confirmed diagnosis were pericardial effusion in 21 patients (78%), pericardial rub in 4 (15%), and ST-segment elevation or PR depression in 5 (19%). Stable doses of baseline medications for recurrent pericarditis, in any combination, included colchicine (85% of patients), non- steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (78%), and corticosteroids (41%).
The 26-week study consisted of an 8- week treatment period (“TP”) followed by an 18-week extension period. In the first 10 days of the TP, CardiolRx™ was added to baseline medications for recurrent pericarditis and up-titrated to 10 mg/kg twice daily, or the maximum tolerated dose. Throughout the TP, patients continued receiving this concomitant therapy but were weaned off baseline medications during the EP to assess pericarditis recurrence while on CardiolRx™ monotherapy.
Summary of results:
– Primary endpoint of patient-reported pericardial pain on an 11-point numerical rating scale from 0-10 showed a mean reduction of 3.7, from 5.8 at baseline (range of 4 to 10) to 2.1 (range of 0 to 6) at week 8.
– Median time to resolution or near resolution of pain (defined as a score of ≤ 2) was rapid and was observed just 5 days following initiation of CardiolRx™ treatment.
– Reduction in pain was maintained throughout the duration of the trial with a mean reduction of 4.3, from 5.8 at baseline to 1.5 at week 26.
– At week 8, 93% (25/27) of patients reported a pain score reduction.
– CRP normalized (≤0.5 mg/dL) at week 8 in 80% (8/10) of the patients with a baseline CRP of ≥1 mg/dL, with a substantial mean reduction of 5.4 mg/dL being observed (5.7mg/dL to 0.3 mg/dL).
– CRP levels for the entire group of patients were reduced from 2.0 mg/dL at baseline to 0.74 and 0.55 at weeks 8 and 26 respectively, with a median time to CRP normalization of 21 days.
– Freedom from recurrence was maintained in 71% (17/24) of patients during the EP when CardiolRx™ was continued and patients were weaned off baseline medications. For those patients experiencing a recurrence the median time to an episode was 7.7 weeks during the EP.
– Number of pericarditis episodes per year was markedly reduced from 5.8 prior to study to 0.9 during the study.
– CardiolRx™ was shown to be safe and well tolerated with eighty-nine percent of patients (24/27) progressing to the EP and overall study drug compliance reported at 95%.
“The compelling results from MAvERIC-Pilot showed that CardiolRx™ resulted in marked and rapid reductions in pericarditis pain and inflammation in patients with a high degree of disease burden as well as a striking decrease in pericarditis episodes per year. The notable impact of CardiolRx™ on these important clinical endpoints demonstrates its potential to offer a more accessible and non-immunosuppressive therapeutic option for tens of thousands of pericarditis patients,” said David Elsley, President and CEO of Cardiol Therapeutics. “These results further support advancing our late-stage MAVERIC clinical development program comprising our recently announced Phase II/III MAVERIC-2 trial as well as our planned MAVERIC-3 Phase III trial. Undertaking both trials in parallel provides the exciting opportunity for CardiolRx™ to address the unmet needs of patients in multiple segments that encompass a broad proportion of the pericarditis population.”
MAvERIC-PILOT Phase II Study
To be eligible for enrollment in MAvERIC-Pilot, adult patients (≥18 years) were required to present with at least their third pericarditis episode, which included symptomatic pericarditis chest pain with a numerical rating scale pain score ≥4 (on an 11-point numerical rating scale (“NRS”) of 0-10), together with either an elevated level of CRP ≥1 mg/dL, a clinical marker of inflammation, or evidence of pericardial inflammation assessed by cardiac imaging with or without elevated CRP. NRS is a validated instrument used to assess patient-reported pericarditis pain. Zero represents ‘no pain at all’, whereas the upper limit of 10 represents ‘the worst pain ever possible’. At baseline eligible patients were permitted to be receiving stable doses of concomitant medications for recurrent pericarditis (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and/or colchicine and/or oral corticosteroid therapy in any combination).
Other related developments from around the markets include:
Abbott Laboratories announced a new, first-of-its-kind clinical trial designed to improve outcomes in patients with worsening heart failure who could benefit from advanced therapy options. The TEAM-HF trial, which is planned to enroll up to 850 patients across 75 sites worldwide, will measure pulmonary artery pressures (PAP) using Abbott’s CardioMEMS™ HF System to objectively identify advanced heart failure patients at high risk of mortality who could benefit from a life-saving HeartMate 3™ left ventricular assist device (LVAD, or heart pump) earlier in their disease progression. Heart failure is a progressive condition that occurs when the heart can’t circulate blood efficiently, resulting in symptoms such as fatigue, breathlessness, and swollen ankles. Approximately 6.7 million people in the United States have heart failure, and that number is expected to rise to 8.5 million by 2030.1 While there are currently evidence-based guidelines for treating patients with advanced therapies (either LVADs or heart transplantation) when they are in end-stage heart failure, there are fewer objective criteria for identifying patients who are earlier in their disease progression. This can result in patients being offered advanced therapies such as an LVAD when their heart failure has become too advanced, leading to poorer outcomes, and even death.
Gilead Sciences just announced its third quarter 2024 results of operations. “Gilead’s third quarter results are the strongest of the year to date, with 7% year-over-year revenue growth, including 13% year-over-year growth for Biktarvy. Based on this very strong topline growth and disciplined operating expense management, we are increasing our full year revenue, operating income, and earnings per share guidance,” said Daniel O’Day, Gilead’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “We are excited to further increase our impact for patients and communities in the months ahead. This includes building on the momentum from the U.S. launch of Livdelzi for primary biliary cholangitis and preparing for the potential launch of the first twice-yearly option for HIV prevention option, lenacapavir.”
Medtronic, a global leader in healthcare technology, just announced United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of the Affera™ Mapping and Ablation System with Sphere-9™ Catheter, an all-in-one, high-density (HD) mapping and pulsed field (PF) and radiofrequency (RF) ablation catheter for treatment of persistent atrial fibrillation (AFib) and for RF ablation of cavotricuspid isthmus (CTI) dependent atrial flutter. With this approval, Medtronic is now the first and only company with two PFA technologies available for patients with Afib. The PulseSelect™ Pulsed Field Ablation System, which was FDA approved in December 2023, offers physicians a safe, single-shot solution for pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) while the Affera Sphere-9 catheter enables physician treatment flexibility with its wide area focal design and 9mm lattice tip that can used with an 8.5Fr sheath.
Boston Scientific announced positive three-year primary endpoint results from the OPTION global clinical trial of the WATCHMAN FLX™ Left Atrial Appendage Closure (LAAC) Device. Key findings from the study comparing the device to first-line oral anticoagulation (OAC) – including direct oral anticoagulants (DOAC) (95%) and warfarin (5%) – for stroke risk reduction in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation following a cardiac ablation were presented in a late-breaking science session at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2024, and simultaneously published in The New England Journal of Medicine. The trial met the primary safety endpoint of non-procedural major bleeding or clinically relevant non-major bleeding at 36 months, with the WATCHMAN FLX device demonstrating superiority to OAC (8.5% vs.18.1%; P<0.0001). It also met the primary efficacy endpoint of all-cause death, stroke or systemic embolism at 36 months, with the data showing non-inferiority of the device to OAC (5.4% vs. 5.8%; P<0.0001). Additional findings included non-inferiority of the WATCHMAN FLX device for the combined secondary endpoint of procedural and non-procedural major bleeding at 36 months (3.9% vs. 5.0%; P<0.0001).
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