Amgen spinout Kezar hits PhII hurdle, all eyes on June readout for drug’s other study

A 2015 spinout from Amgen’s $10.4 billion Onyx Pharmaceuticals purchase has hit a mid-stage roadblock.

Kezar Life Sciences’ lead asset, zetomipzomib, showed no differentiation from placebo in a mid-stage study in patients with two rare muscle inflammation and skin diseases. The Phase II PRESIDIO trial flop was seen in patients with dermatomyositis, DM, and polymyositis, or PM, which are two chronic inflammatory autoimmune diseases that impact about 30,000 to 120,000 people in the US.