Novartis drug posts blockbuster data in Phase III

Novartis announced positive results after testing its respiratory drug QAB149 in a late-stage, head-to-head study with two established therapeutics. All doses of the drug met the primary endpoint in the COPD study, and the pharma giant believes it has a potential blockbuster therapy on its hands.

"I think QAB becomes a very substantial opportunity," Trevor Mundel, the head of development at Novartis Pharma, tells Reuters. "I think heading towards a blockbuster." The drug could be on the market next year.

In the study, researchers said that QAB140 was superior to bronchodilators formoterol and tiotropium. And that squares nicely with Novartis' plans to advance the therapy on its own as well as in combination with other therapies. "QAB149 is the cornerstone for a large number of potentially valuable future combinations," concluded Citigroup, noting that Novartis has a significant number of respiratory drugs in the pipeline that are worth watching.

- here's Novartis' release [1]
- read the story [2] from Reuters

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