BioCentury
ARTICLE | Finance

Falling for HER

Immunogen sinks on prospects for Kadcyla in first-line breast cancer.

December 22, 2014 8:00 AM UTC

Judging by the $407 million haircut ImmunoGen Inc. (NASDAQ:IMGN) took on Friday, investors have lost almost all confidence in Kadcyla ado-trastuzumab emtansine being used as a first-line agent to treat HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer.

On Friday, partner Roche (SIX:ROG; OTCQX:RHHBY) reported that all three HER2-targeted regimens tested in the Phase III MARIANNE study - Kadcyla plus Perjeta pertuzumab, Kadcyla alone and Herceptin trastuzumab plus taxane chemotherapy - resulted in similar progression-free survival, the primary endpoint. Kadcyla met the endpoint according to standards of non-inferiority. But neither Kadcyla arm significantly improved PFS vs. the Herceptin arm...