Clinical Trials of Herpes Drug Are Halted on Preliminary Data

Eli Lilly & Co. and 3M Co. suspended clinical trials of their genital herpes treatment, Resiquimod, because preliminary data showed the drug was not as effective as expected. Lilly said the study's data showed no safety concerns with the drug, which showed positive results in earlier Phase II clinical trials. Lilly and 3M will evaluate the Phase III trial results, in addition to Phase II results, to determine whether to conduct further studies of Resiquimod. The drug is a more potent sister to 3M's Aldara, which also treats genital herpes. Separately, 3M said it will reevaluate the clinical approach on Resiquimod, while the company's broader family of immune-response-modifiers continues to show progress. A pipeline of new IRM molecules is being built by 3M for a broad range of indications.

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