STAT+: Eli Lilly says Verve’s gene editor lowers cholesterol levels in early study
Why this matters: health reporting relevant to everyday decisions and well-being.
Eli Lilly said Monday that a high dose of its gene-editing therapy reduced cholesterol levels by 62% in participants in a clinical trial, an early but encouraging test of whether a one-time treatment may one day help people seeking to lower their LDL, or “bad,” cholesterol. Lilly acquired the therapy, VERV-102, in its $1 billion buyout of Verve Therapeutics last year. Executives tout it as a potential treatment to broadly prevent heart disease, the world’s leading killer, as many patients struggle to stay on existing, more conventional medicines for reducing cholesterol levels. There were no treatment-related serious adverse events in the Phase 1 study — a notable finding, given that Verve had to shelve its first candidate due to safety concerns. Continue to STAT+ to read the full story…