Theravance Biopharma said that it expects to cut 270 jobs, or 75% of its current workforce, by February 2022 and that it will stop development of candidates outside of its respiratory portfolio. The announcement came just after the company announced the failure of a Phase 3 trial of its oral ampreloxetine. The company said that its R&D focus will now be on a label expansion for Yupelri and on its TD-0903 inhaled nezulcitinib for inflammatory lung diseases.
Earlier this year, Theravance Bio announced that a Phase 2 trial of TD-0903 for COVID-19 had failed to meet its primary endpoint. A Phase 2 trial of another inhaled dry powder pan-JAK inhibitor, TD-8236, was initiated in November 2019 and was completed in August 2020.
According to the announcement, Theravance expects enough income from sales Yupelri revefenacin inhalation solution and from royalties generated by sales of GSK’s Trelegy Ellipta fluticasone furoate / umeclidinium / vilanterol DPI to “generate significant value creation opportunities for the company’s shareholders.” Theravance cited estimates that Yupelri “has the potential to generate US peak sales exceeding $400 million” and that global sales of Trelegy are expected to reach $3 billion per year.
Yupelri was approved by the FDA for the treatment of COPD in 2018. Trelegy Ellipta was approved by the FDA for the treatment of COPD in September 2017 and for the treatment of asthma in 2020.
Theravance Biopharma Chairman and CEO Rick E Winningham commented, “Given the recent results from our late-stage development programs, we have made the difficult but necessary decision to focus our resources on our most promising respiratory programs and reduce the size of the organization. I want to thank all of the patients who participated in our clinical trials and their families, the investigators, as well as the Theravance Biopharma employees who have worked tirelessly on these programs. I am grateful for the team’s significant contributions over the years. I am confident these actions will help us to continue making transformational medicines aimed at improving the lives of patients suffering from serious respiratory illnesses while creating value for our shareholders.”
Read the Theravance Biopharma press release.
