AbbVie Expected To Ditch Abicipar After US FDA Setback

Jun 26 2020

• By Joseph Haas

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With a complete response letter for wet AMD drug abicipar, AbbVie is expected to move on from the drug acquired with Allergan. Molecular Partners now seems inclined to focus on IO, virology.

Female eye with long eyelashes close up. Closeup shot of female gray - blue colour eye with day makeup. Beauty female eye with curl long eyelashes — FDA determined that abicipar's benefit don't outweigh its risk of intraocular inflammation

AbbVie Inc. seems unlikely to invest further resources or effort into anti-VEGF drug abicipar pegol for wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD) following a US Food and Drug Administration complete response letter on 26 June, and Molecular Partners AG, which discovered and initially developed the candidate, also appears to be positioning away from ophthalmology to increase its focus on cancer and virology programs.

Both companies announced the CRL on 26 June, noting that the FDA decided the drug has an unfavorable benefit-risk ratio...

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