(Bloomberg) -- Roche Holding AG said it isn’t concerned about side effects in a small study of a weight-loss shot, after details about the trial sent shares tumbling on Monday.
“We’re not alarmed at all,” Hans Clevers, head of pharma research and early development at Roche, said at the opening of a research center in Basel. “This looks as good as any other in this class.”
What’s important is that no patient in the trial for obesity drug CT-388 stopped treatment, Clevers said. Roche’s other weight-loss candidate, the pill CT-966, has the potential to be “best in class,” he added. Details on that drug’s side effects in a small study will be released at a medical conference on Wednesday.
Roche shares fell as much as 4.5% Monday after a poster highlighting CT-388 side effects, including nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, was released early. The stock pared some of the losses on Tuesday and has risen about 10% this year. That compares with an 18% increase in a Bloomberg index tracking European drugmakers.
The soaring demand for obesity drugs, a market that is estimated to reach $130 billion by the end of the decade, is looming large over all pharmaceutical companies.
Roche recently acquired its portfolio of experimental weight-loss treatments, buoying investors’ expectations after a spate of drug development stumbles at the Basel, Switzerland-based company. Details of safety and side effects will be crucial as Roche seeks to compete with the obesity field’s leaders, such as Novo Nordisk A/S, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.
In a move to increase productivity, Roche is also moving away from potentially less lucrative assets and narrowing its focus to five core therapy areas: cancer and hematology, neurology, immunology, ophthalmology, and cardiovascular and metabolism.
Roche is diversifying its paths in oncology on the hunt for “the next big thing,” Clevers said. Antibody-drug conjugates, such as AstraZeneca Plc’s Enhertu, are a promising field.
“We’re currently actively looking for partners in this area,” Clevers said.
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