The stock eventually closed the session with losses of 48%.
A 66-year old man, who had enrolled for the trial, went to the emergency room with a severe lung inflammation, a month after beginning the company’s therapy. He later died after discontinuing treatment.
Based out of San Diego, Erasca disclosed data from an early-stage trial of its experimental therapy for pancreatic and lung cancer. Data showed that the treatment was generally well-tolerated with mostly low-grade side effects.
Tuesday’s fall was the biggest on record for shares of Erasca, since its public debut in 2021.
“While likely an isolated case in a complex patient, it introduces tension with the otherwise benign safety narrative and raises questions around attribution and reporting consistency,” HC Wainwright analyst Andres Y. Maldonado wrote in a note to clients.
Erasca’s 48% fall comes on the heels of another 11% decline on Tuesday, after the company received a cease-and-desist letter from rival Revolution Medicines Inc., which alleged that its cancer therapy is “substantially equivalent” to certain compositions claimed in a RevMed patent.
The fall in Erasca after its disclosure boosted fortunes of its rival RevMed, which surged 10%. The stock is up nearly 60% in the last one month after posting results of a late-stage trial earlier this month, which stated that its treatment for an aggressive form of pancreatic cancer boosted patients’ survival chances.
(With Inputs From Agencies)
