Bayer Pulls Plug on Riociguat Trial Following Patient Deaths

Bayer has cut short a Phase 2 clinical trial for the hypertension candidate riociguat after an independent monitoring committee warned about the risk of potentially fatal idiopathic interstitial pneumonia.

The committee concluded that patients receiving riociguat faced an increased risk of serious adverse events as compared to patients in the placebo group. It did not identify any specific cause or common feature among the patients who died except that many seemed to have more serious and advanced underlying lung disease than other study participants.

Bayer officials expressed disappointment with the trial results.