Novartis' Phase III pelacarsen trial misses primary cardiovascular endpoint

Novartis reports that the Phase III Lp(a)HORIZON study of pelacarsen did not meet its primary cardiovascular endpoint in patients with elevated lipoprotein(a) and established cardiovascular disease.

The Phase III Lp(a)HORIZON trial did not demonstrate a statistically significant reduction in major adverse cardiovascular events with pelacarsen compared with placebo, despite substantially lowering lipoprotein(a) levels.

Novartis said it will analyse the full dataset to better understand the findings, with the result carrying implications for the emerging field of Lp(a)-targeted cardiovascular therapies.

Field	Content
Alert Type	Phase III clinical trial results
Company	Novartis
Drug / Asset	Pelacarsen
Trial	Lp(a)HORIZON
Development Stage	Phase III
Therapy Area(s)	Cardiovascular disease
Target	Lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)]
Patient Population	Patients with elevated Lp(a) and established cardiovascular disease
What Happened	The Phase III Lp(a)HORIZON study did not meet its primary endpoint, with pelacarsen failing to demonstrate a statistically significant reduction in major adverse cardiovascular events compared with placebo.
Why It Matters	The result is significant for Novartis and the wider development of therapies targeting elevated Lp(a), an important genetically determined cardiovascular risk factor.
Supporting Context	Pelacarsen substantially lowered Lp(a) levels in the study, but this did not translate into a statistically significant reduction in the trial's primary cardiovascular endpoint.
Key Takeaway	Lp(a)HORIZON missed its primary cardiovascular endpoint despite the expected reduction in Lp(a), leaving further analysis of the trial data important for understanding the future role of pelacarsen.
What to Watch	Novartis' further analysis and presentation of the complete Lp(a)HORIZON dataset, including secondary endpoints and subgroup findings.
Primary Source	Novartis
Relevant Date	4 September 2026

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