Summary The drug reduced pain intensity by 69 percent in 24 hours.
REUTERS - Drug developer Heron Therapeutics Inc said its experimental pain drug met the main goal of a mid-stage study, sending its shares soaring 35 percent in after-market trading.
The company said on Tuesday the experimental drug, HTX-011, was better than a placebo in reducing pain in patients who had undergone bunionectomy, a surgery to remove an enlarged portion of the feet.
The drug reduced pain intensity by 69 percent in 24 hours and by 40 percent in 72 hours, the company said.
HTX-011, a combination of local anesthetic bupivacaine and anti-inflammatory meloxicam, was well-tolerated in the study.
The company has been focusing on the experimental pain drug after having applied for U.S. marketing approval for its drug Sustol to treat chemotherapy-induced vomiting and nausea.
AcelRx Pharmaceuticals Inc, Innocoll AG, Insys Therapeutics Inc and Ocular Therapeutix Inc are among companies developing rival post-operative painkillers.
Up to Tuesday s close of $33.56, the company s shares had more than tripled this year. The shares gained 60 percent in late-May, following positive late-stage study data on Sustol.
