Arena Rises, But Raises Questions With Phase II Ralinepag Data In PAH

Arena reported statistically and "clinically" significant results from its Phase II study for ralinepag in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), driving its share price up by more than 40%, but details expected later this year or in 2018 are needed to shed more light on the data.

Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) drug candidate ralinepag met the efficacy bar that the company set for its oral therapy in a Phase II placebo-controlled study, but baseline characteristics of patients in the two treatment arms raise questions about what drove the results.

Investors liked what they saw when Arena released the highly-anticipated top-line data – the first Phase II efficacy results for...