LONDON — The Belgian company Argenx said Wednesday that its closely watched antibody therapy failed to outperform placebo in a Phase 3 trial in an autoimmune condition that causes the skin to blister — the second setback in less than a month for the biotech and its drug.
Argenx’s stock was down roughly 30% in early trading.
Argenx said that it was stopping development of its drug, called efgartigimod, in pemphigus, a disease that causes blisters and sores on the skin and mucous membranes. In the trial, dubbed ADDRESS, there was not a significant difference in patients who saw complete remission of their condition between those who received the drug and those who were on placebo. The trial included 222 adult patients with different types of pemphigus.
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