Bayer AG has confirmed that of the three projects in its Factor XIa program, the full focus is now on the oral treatment asundexian, ahead of two partnered therapies – fesomersen and osocimab – which had also shown potential in mid-stage trials.
Asundexian is positioned as the next-generation Xarelto (rivaroxaban), the firm's blockbuster Factor Xa blood thinner, and Bayer CEO Werner Baumann said on a third-quarter media call that a late-stage trial for the prevention of stroke, "one of our largest Phase III projects to date, is expected to start before the end of this year." The company is looking to enrol more than 30,000 patients to further investigate the next-generation Factor XIa inhibitor on the back of Phase II data from the PACIFIC program presented at the European Society of Cardiology congress in Barcelona in August
