Novartis said on Saturday it will stop developing pelacarsen for broad cardiovascular prevention after the Lp(a) HORIZON trial, presented at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions in New Orleans, missed its primary endpoint. The antisense drug, developed with Ionis Pharmaceuticals, lowered lipoprotein(a) by more than 85 percent in more than 8,300 patients with high Lp(a) and established cardiovascular disease, yet produced no statistically significant reduction in heart attacks, strokes or other serious cardiovascular events. Novartis will also cease work on the oral form and stop funding development for people who have not yet had a heart attack or stroke, restricting future work to patients with severe hyperlipidemia while it reviews the full data.
Novartis shelves pelacarsen after landmark heart trial fails
Novartis is largely abandoning pelacarsen, once projected as a multi-billion-dollar blockbuster, after its 8,300-patient Lp(a) HORIZON trial lowered lipoprotein(a) by more than 85 percent but failed to cut cardiovascular events.
Why it matters: The result casts doubt on whether lowering Lp(a), a genetically inherited risk factor affecting about a fifth of the global population, prevents heart attacks and strokes at all, a premise an entire class of drugs in development is built on.
Data as of Investing.com report of November 7, 2026, read in full via the estate browser route; all trial figures are from that report of the announcement at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions. The trial failure was also reported the same day by STAT and Endpoints News. Developing item.
Sources
- Novartis shelves potential blockbuster pelacarsen as landmark study fails - Investing.com - 2026-11-07
- Failure of Novartis Lp(a) drug raises questions about cardiovascular strategy - STAT - 2026-11-07