François Brisebois's questions to DURECT (DRRX) leadership • Q4 2024
Question
François Brisebois of Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. inquired about the estimated cost and timeline for the Phase III trial of larsucosterol and asked for elaboration on the time-to-dose variations observed between U.S. and ex-U.S. patients in the Phase IIb study.
Answer
An executive, James Brown, estimated the Phase III trial would cost approximately $20 million and take about two years to reach top-line data. Brown, along with executives Norman Sussman and Weiqi Lin, explained that the time-to-dose variation is critical in an acute disease like alcohol-associated hepatitis. They noted that U.S. patients were treated much faster (around 4 days) than in some ex-U.S. regions (up to 2 weeks), which significantly impacted outcomes. The upcoming Phase III trial will control for this by ensuring all patients are dosed within approximately 9 days.