Paradigm surges 63pc to all-time high after hitting knee pain trial goals

Shares in biotech Paradigm Biopharma have surged 63 per cent in early Tuesday trade, after the company released positive results from its phase 2 clinical trial in patients with knee osteoarthritis pain.

Paradigm (ASX:PAR) went into a trading halt on Friday at $1.32 and rose to an early intraday high of $2.15 on the back of the news. Most recently it was trading at $1.60, a 20pc rise.

The clinical trial, testing Paradigm’s injectable pentosan polysulfate sodium (iPPS) in patients with knee pain from osteoarthritis and subchondral bone marrow edema lesions, met its primary endpoint of change in Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) 53 days after treatment.

Paradigm’s (ASX:PAR) history as a listed company.

It also found that 46 per cent of patients who received iPPS showed more than a 50 per cent reduction in knee pain, compared with 23 per cent of patients who received a placebo.

Paradigm says the results are both “highly statistically significant” and “highly clinically meaningful”, opening the pathway for phase 3 trials which it will commence in 2019.

The positive results and moving share price compare favourably with other biotech companies that have reported clinical trial results recently.

Mesoblast and ResApp are two who have been met with share price falls as their primary endpoints were missed.

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Paradigm chief Paul Rennie was especially buoyant following the release of the results, particularly in light of some of his peers’ misses.

“We are impressed with the results given the widespread difficulty ASX-listed biotechnology companies have had in achieving positive phase 2b trial results over the last few years,” he told the market.

“To achieve clinically meaningful and statistically significant results between iPPS and Placebo in the total population and highly clinically meaningful and highly statistically significant results is truly an outstandingly positive trial outcome.

“If you have clinical significance and statistical significance you have a high probability the drug will pass a Phase 3 clinical trial and once registered a drug that can penetrate the market.”