OncoMed Absorbs Double Dose Of Bad News With Trial Failure, Two Options Declined

The California biotech's Phase II pancreatic cancer candidate demcizumab failed to show benefit versus placebo for progression-free or overall survival. Meanwhile, Bayer decided not to exercise its options on a pair of Wnt pathway candidates under a 2010 collaboration with OncoMed.

Desperate businessmen

For its investors, OncoMed Pharmaceuticals Inc. had bad news and then more bad news on April 10 and they reacted in the expected way on learning that pancreatic cancer candidate demcizumab failed a Phase II trial and that Bayer AG had declined its options under a 2010 deal for a pair of Phase II-ready Wnt pathway inhibitors.

The Redwood City, Calif.-based biotech's stock price dropped steeply after the news, although recovering a bit by the end of...

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