Merck has ceased a study of the drug verubecestat for the treatment of people with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease after an external monitoring panel found “virtually no chance of finding a positive clinical effect," the company announced recently.
The panel, however, did recommend continuing to evaluate the same drug in a separate study of patients with prodromal Alzheimer’s, after noting that safety indicators “are not sufficient to warrant stopping" such studies.
Results from the prodomal study are expected this month, while results from study that was cut short will be analyzed and presented at an upcoming scientific meeting.
“Alzheimer’s disease is one of the most pressing and daunting medical issues of our time, with inherent, substantial challenges to developing an effective disease-modifying therapy for people with mild-to-moderate disease,” Roger Perlmutter, president of Merck Research Laboratories, said.
