Nektar (NKTR) Seeks Approval For Analgesic Opioid Candidate
Zacks Investment Research | May 31, 2018 10:24PM ET
Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) announced the submission of a new drug application (“NDA”) for its analgesic opioid candidate, NKTR-181, for the treatment of chronic low back pain. The candidate exhibited reduced incidence of euphoria associated with opioids, which can lead to abuse and addiction.
Shares of the company are up 2.4% in pre-market. Nektar’s shares have outperformed the industry so far this year. The stock has soared 34.5% against the broader industry’s decline of 6.5%.
The NDA included data from 15 clinical studies, which evaluated the safety and efficacy of NKTR-181 in patients with chronic low back pain who were not treated with any opioid therapy and non-cancer pain. Two studies evaluating NKTR-181 for human abuse potential showed significantly less abuse potential compared with oxycodone.
Per the press release, low back pain is the second most common factor causing disability in adults in the United States.
However, Nektar is expected to face intense competition in the pain market with several companies developing therapies. Its competitors include Collegium Pharmaceutical, Inc.’s (NASDAQ:COLL) Xtampza and Teva Pharmaceutical’s (NYSE:TEVA) Naproxen.
Apart from NKTR-181, Nektar’s pipeline also has several early and late-stage candidates. The lead pipeline candidate, Onzeald is being evaluated in a phase III study for treating adults with advanced breast cancer with brain metastases. The company is developing NKTR-358 in phase I study for treating autoimmune disease and NKTR-214 in phase I/II study in solid tumors. Nektar has collaborated with Bristol-Myers (NYSE:BMY) to develop NKTR-214 in combination with the latter’s immune-oncology drug, Opdivo, in more than 20 indications in nine tumor types.
Nektar Therapeutics Price
Zacks Investment Research
Get The News You Want
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.