Pharmaceutical giant, GSK Plc has discontinued a trial of an oral antibiotic that could replace an intravenous medicine typically used to treat complicated urinary tract infections after trial showed positive results.
A pharmaceutical companies can halt trials early if the results are clear enough, allowing them to file for approval quicker and to avoid a scenario where the control group is kept on a less effective treatment longer than necessary.
The development is coming after GSK’s oral antibiotic for uncomplicated urinary tract infections was approved this year in the US.
The antibiotic called tebipenem HBr, which is being developed by GSK and Spero Therapeutics, worked as well as intravenous antibiotic in the late stage trial, the company said Wednesday.
GSK plans to file for US approval later this year and will submit the full results to an upcoming scientific congress.
Complicated urinary tract infections can cause sepsis, with many patients needing to go to hospital for intravenous antibiotic treatment. Estimates show the economic burden of the infections amounts to over $6 billion in the US.
Most drugmakers have stopped developing antibiotics due to the difficult market dynamics, and GSK is one of the few large companies still in this space.
GSK agreed the deal with Spero in 2022, paying $66 million upfront with various milestone payments, including $150 million for delivery of the late stage trial.
