Novartis (NVS) and Ionis (IONS)' Experimental Cholesterol Drug Fails in Late-Stage Trial
On September 5, 2026, Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS), in partnership with Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:IONS), announced that their experimental drug pelacarsen failed to reduce heart attacks and strokes despite lowering Lp(a) cholesterol levels as expected. The Phase III trial involved over 8,000 patients but did not show a reduction in cardiovascular events. Following the news, Novartis shares dropped by 5%, while Ionis' fell nearly 12%. The failure of pelacarsen removes one potential blockbuster for both companies and raises concerns about other Lp(a)-targeting drugs still under development. While Novartis highlighted ongoing pipeline opportunities such as remibrutinib, which recently succeeded in a late-stage trial with peak sales estimates up to $9 billion, the setback adds pressure on revenue replacement amid patent expirations for key products like Entresto. Ionis Pharmaceuticals faces greater concentration risk due to its smaller size and reliance on pelacarsen. The company still retains other pipeline assets and recently gained approval of Zanvastro for Alexander disease.
Topics: cardiovascular drug development clinical trial failure Lp(a) pathway research