ZURICH, Dec 6 – Swiss drugmaker Roche Holding AG <ROG.VX> presented the results of studies on two drugs in mid-stage development that may go some way towards addressing concerns about the strength of the company's drug pipeline.
Roche, the world's largest maker of cancer drugs, said on Monday that eight-week results from a phase II study of an investigational drug for the treatment of schizophrenia showed it reduced the negative symptoms of the condition and helped patients better deal with personal and social situations.
The study measured improvements in patients with mostly negative symptoms of schizophrenia who received the drug, a schizophrenia Glycine reuptake inhibitor called RG1678, in combination with second-generation antipsychotics.
The company also said results from another phase II study yielded promising results in difficult-to-treat patients with a common type of blood cancer.
Roche, best known for its widely-used cancer drugs, has said it wants to broaden its business beyond oncology and sees blockbuster sales potential for several experimental drugs.
The group has faced a series of setbacks with its top-selling cancer drug Avastin and an experimental rheumatoid arthritis drug called ocrelizumab. [ID:nLDE62I06Q]
The drugmaker said last month it would cut 4,800 jobs or 6 percent of its workforce over the next two years in order to save 2.4 billion Swiss francs per year from 2012 onwards as it grapples with recent product setbacks and mounting pressure on prices. [ID:nLDE6AF29X] (Reporting by Martin de Sa'Pinto and Silke Koltrowitz; Editing by Jon Loades-Carter)