Novartis announced on Friday, September 18, 2026 that the CHMP adopted a positive opinion for Cosentyx (secukinumab) to treat polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) in adults who have had an inadequate response to steroids or who relapse during steroid taper. Novartis says Cosentyx would be the first IL-17A inhibitor licensed in Europe for PMR. The opinion is based on the global Phase III REPLENISH trial, run in 27 countries, in which all primary and secondary endpoints were met across both the 300 mg and 150 mg arms; Cosentyx doubled sustained remission rates and delivered steroid-sparing effects versus placebo, with no new safety signals. The data were published in the New England Journal of Medicine, and the European Commission is expected to decide within about two months.
Novartis (NYSE: NVS) initiated clinical holds on all rap-cel (YTB323, an autologous CD19-directed CAR-T cell therapy) autoimmune trials on August 24, 2026 following three fatal cases of immune effector cell-associated hemophagocytic syndrome, a rare life-threatening inflammatory reaction. Affected trials cover lupus (systemic lupus erythematosus), myasthenia gravis, multiple sclerosis, systemic sclerosis, idiopathic inflammatory myopathies, and additional autoimmune indications. Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) voluntarily paused enrollment in its own zola-cel (zolacabtagene autoleucel, another autologous CD19 CAR-T) autoimmune trials after detecting transient and reversible inflammatory events during routine safety surveillance; BMS had halted the enrollment in June 2026 after cases of brain inflammation but did not publicly disclose the pause until three months later. Novartis and BMS were the leading commercial-scale CAR-T-in-autoimmune-disease players; the paired pauses are a substantial setback for the category, which had been the hottest cell-therapy expansion area of 2026 after Kyverna, Cabaletta Bio, and multiple academic centers reported dramatic clinical responses in refractory lupus and neurological autoimmune disease.
Novartis (NYSE: NVS) announced Friday September 4, 2026 that the pelacarsen Phase 3 Lp(a)HORIZON trial did not meet its primary endpoint of reducing major adverse cardiovascular events (a composite of cardiovascular death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, non-fatal stroke, and urgent coronary revascularization requiring hospitalization) versus placebo in patients with elevated lipoprotein(a) plus established cardiovascular disease on guideline-directed background therapy including lipid-lowering and antihypertensive medications. Pelacarsen (an antisense oligonucleotide targeting hepatic APO(a) production, licensed from Ionis Pharmaceuticals in 2019) did achieve substantial lower Lp(a) levels versus placebo. The trial enrolled roughly 8,000 patients globally over 6 years and represents the largest and most consequential test to date of the Lp(a)-as-causal-cardiovascular-risk-factor hypothesis. The miss substantially raises the bar for Amgen's olpasiran (RNAi, Phase 3 OCEAN(a) ongoing), Silence Therapeutics's zerlasiran (RNAi), and Lilly's lepodisiran (RNAi) — all of which are testing similar Lp(a)-lowering-plus-cardiovascular-outcome frameworks. Ionis and Royalty Pharma both hold economic interests in pelacarsen.
Alteogen (KOSDAQ: 196170) announced Wednesday September 2, 2026 an option and license agreement with Novartis (NYSE: NVS) for the development and commercialization of subcutaneous formulations of multiple Novartis products using Alteogen's ALT-B4 (berahyaluronidase alfa) enabled by the proprietary Hybrozyme technology. Terms: up to $3.22 billion in aggregate potential value including option exercise fees, development and commercial milestone payments, plus royalties on net sales. ALT-B4 temporarily depolymerizes hyaluronan in the extracellular matrix, enabling co-administered biologics to disperse and absorb subcutaneously rather than requiring intravenous infusion. The transaction is Alteogen's fourth Hybrozyme deal in 2026 following prior agreements with Merck KGaA, Sanofi, and one undisclosed global pharma. The technology approach mirrors Halozyme Therapeutics's ENHANZE platform (used in Roche's SC Herceptin, Rituxan, and Ocrevus, plus Bristol Myers Squibb's SC Opdivo and Johnson & Johnson's SC Darzalex), and the SC-conversion category has become an anchor commercial strategy for pharma companies looking to extend patent life and improve patient convenience on established IV biologics.
Novartis (NYSE: NVS) shares rose more than 4% Tuesday September 1 and continued climbing Wednesday September 2, 2026 following the twin REMODEL-1 and REMODEL-2 Phase 3 wins of remibrutinib (an oral BTK inhibitor) in relapsing multiple sclerosis, which met both primary endpoints versus teriflunomide with a clean liver-safety profile across the 4,500+ patient program. Investor focus now turns to two additional Novartis growth-vehicle programs: pacibekitug (an anti-IL-6 monoclonal antibody acquired in the $1.4 billion Tourmaline Bio acquisition earlier in 2026) advancing into Phase 3 for cardiovascular risk reduction despite Novo Nordisk's ZEUS ziltivekimab Phase 3 miss at ESC 2026 last weekend; and the ongoing integration of the $12 billion Avidity Biosciences acquisition centered on RNAi drug delivery to muscle tissue for facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy, DM1 myotonic dystrophy, and Duchenne muscular dystrophy programs. Novartis Q3 2026 earnings release is scheduled for late October.
Novartis (NYSE: NVS) announced Tuesday September 1, 2026 that the twin REMODEL-1 and REMODEL-2 Phase 3 trials of remibrutinib (an oral, selective, high-efficacy Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitor) met both primary endpoints in relapsing multiple sclerosis, with remibrutinib demonstrating statistically significant superiority versus teriflunomide (Aubagio) in reducing annualized relapse rate (ARR) and inflammatory brain MRI lesions. Key secondary endpoints related to disability progression trended in favor of remibrutinib, with nominal significance in 6-month confirmed disability progression (6mCDP) in a preplanned pooled analysis. Safety was clean: no liver-safety signal and no cases meeting Hy's Law criteria across a broader remibrutinib development program that has now enrolled more than 4,500 participants across neurologic and immune-mediated indications. Full REMODEL-1/-2 data will be presented at MSToronto2026 (ECTRIMS-ACTRIMS joint meeting, October 21-23, Toronto). Regulatory submissions will follow. The readout positions remibrutinib as a potential oral option in a category currently anchored by injectable anti-CD20 therapies (Ocrevus, Kesimpta, Briumvi) plus Sanofi's Aubagio and the sphingosine-1-phosphate receptor modulators.
Novartis (NYSE: NVS) reiterated at ESC Congress 2026 Saturday August 29 that it will advance the Phase 3 program for pacibekitug (an anti-IL-6 monoclonal antibody acquired from Tourmaline Bio through the $1.4 billion acquisition completed earlier in 2026) for cardiovascular risk reduction in inflammation-driven disease, notwithstanding the Phase 3 ZEUS trial failure of Novo Nordisk's ziltivekimab announced the same weekend. Novartis's stance is that ZEUS was underpowered in the specific ASCVD-plus-CKD-plus-inflammation subgroup rather than a class-level miss for IL-6 blockade, and that pacibekitug's differentiated pharmacokinetic profile (longer half-life and less frequent dosing) plus the differently-selected patient population in the planned Phase 3 will allow the mechanism to prove out. The commitment is a $1.4 billion acquisition-scale bet against the base-rate signal from ZEUS and continues the pattern of large pharma anti-inflammatory cardiovascular pipeline commitment following the earlier successful CANTOS canakinumab (IL-1β) proof of concept.