Genentech's faricimab improves BCVA in Phase II for wet AMD

Genentech Inc. reported data from the Phase II STAIRWAY trial to treat wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD) showing that faricimab (RG7716) dosed every 12 or 16 weeks led to sustained improvements in visual outcomes that were comparable to that of Lucentis ranibizumab dosed every four weeks. Based on the data, the company plans to start a global Phase III program next year for faricimab in the indication.

At week 52, a 6 mg dose of intravitreal faricimab improved best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) from baseline by 10.1 letters at the every 12-week regimen and by 11.4 letters at the every 16-week regimen vs. 9.6 letters for Lucentis. The Roche (SIX:ROG; OTCQX:RHHBY) unit said 65% of patients who received faricimab had no active disease at week 24. The three treatment arms also led to comparable reductions in central retina thickness and similar proportions of patients who gained more than 15 letters and avoided a loss of more than 15 letters in BCVA. The double-blind, U.S. trial enrolled 76 treatment-naïve patients with wet AMD. Data were presented at the American Academy of Ophthalmology meeting in Chicago...