Vertex's success kills off Savara's experimental cystic fibrosis drug hopes

Texas-based biotech Savara is killing off a midstage test of its investigational cystic fibrosis (CF) hopeful Molgradex after a new winner-takes-all competitor from Vertex.

The biotech in fact halted the test of its phase 2a exploratory test, known as ENCORE, back in March due to the COVID-29 pandemic.

This was set up as a 48-week, open-label, noncontrolled test of its drug Molgradex, an inhaled granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) for the treatment of nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) lung infection in people living with CF.