Recently, Bayer and its partner MSD announced the initiation of a new Phase III clinical VICTOR study to further evaluate the application of Vericiguat in heart failure patients. The study will examine the efficacy of Vericiguat in chronic heart failure patients with a recent absence of worsening events and an ejection fraction below 40%, a population similar to those in several other recent heart failure studies. Based on the results of the VICTORIA study, Vericiguat has been approved in the United States, Japan, and the European Union.
Dr. Javed Butler from the University of Mississippi Medical Center said, "Vericiguat has now been approved in multiple countries/regions for patients with recent worsening heart failure, an area with significant unmet medical needs. We look forward to the results from the VICTOR study to understand how vericiguat performs in patients with earlier stages of heart failure, to evaluate its potential benefits in a broader heart failure population."
Christian Rommel, Ph.D., Member of the Executive Committee of Bayer's Pharmaceuticals Division and Head of Research and Development, said: "We are very pleased that vericiguat has begun to make a difference for patients with heart failure. The new Phase III VICTOR study fulfills our mission to bring potential benefits to more patients. In addition to this pivotal study, we are also committed to obtaining more clinical evidence for vericiguat, and the full plan will be announced at the appropriate time."
The VICTOR study program has begun recruiting approximately 6,000 adult patients with chronic heart failure and reduced ejection fraction who have not experienced a recent worsening heart failure event, complementing the patient population of the VICTORIA study. The primary efficacy endpoint is the time to the first occurrence of cardiovascular death or hospitalization due to heart failure (NCT05093933).