Not all of the stock market had a terrible week in the wake of the subprime lender meltdown. Drugmaker Adolor (NASDAQ:ADLR) started this week off right with shares up 26% after it announced the path forward for its lead drug candidate, Entereg.
Entereg is a treatment for gastrointestinal-related disorders. Last year, Adolor failed to gain marketing approval of Entereg as a treatment for postoperative ileus (this bowel disorder, which is often occurs after surgery, is also known as POI). The company's shares are still down nearly 70% from its 52-week high. At an investor conference earlier this week, Adolor further elucidated its plans for the drug this year.
As a treatment for POI, next quarter Adolor still plans on submitting a response to the second approvable letter it received last year. With an expected six-month FDA review, Adolor and partner GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE:GSK) will get the thumbs-up or -down on the drug in the fourth quarter of this year.
Of course, if Progenics Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:PGNX) gets approval of its competing therapy this year, Adolor won't be the first company to get a crack at treating POI.
Annual costs of treating POI are hard to come by, as no effective treatments for it are available. But the costs are estimated to be nearly $1.5 billion in the U.S. for hospital-related expenses alone.
Adolor's new update this week came in regards to the timeline for Entereg as a treatment for opioid-induced bowel dysfunction (OBD). Adolor announced that GSK was sticking with the program and planning to run another clinical trial before filing for marketing approval in this indication. No other details were given, except that this new clinical trial will begin next quarter and the timeline will be updated then.
Except for some statistically insignificant cardiac events, the drug has been shown to be safe in thousands of patients over multiple clinical trials. Results from a potentially make-it-or-break-it study that could help solidify the safety profile of Entereg will be out in the second quarter, so 2007 promises to be a busy year for Adolor.
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Fool contributor Brian Lawler does not own shares of any company mentioned in this article. The Fool has a disclosure policy.
