Firebrick Pharma (ASX: FRE) shares are down 82%. FRE shares are down on the back of a quite glorious failure - actually performing worse than the placebo being used in the testing process. Often enough - and this is, of course, why we do all of this pharma testing - the result is not much different from the placebo, or statistically indistinguishable and so on. But to actually perform worse than, yes, that’s a grandiose failure.
The announcement itself: “Firebrick Pharma Limited (ASX:FRE) (Firebrick, Company) announces that trial statisticians have completed their efficacy analysis of the headline results in the Phase 3 trial of Nasodine® Nasal Spray (“Nasodine”) as a treatment for the common cold. The analysis has shown that the trial did not meet its primary endpoint, which was the impact of Nasodine on overall cold severity (GSS) in subjects with a confirmed viral infection (ITTi). Based on the reported results, the placebo (sterile water) performed better than Nasodine. In the QoL (‘quality-of-life’) measure (functional impairment caused by a cold), the results were also in favour of the placebo in the ITTi. Similar enigmatic results were seen in other population subsets.”
“Enigmatic” is one way of putting it, yes. For the finding is that squirting water up your nose works better than this treatment they were trying. Which is, as we say, a rather grand finding. For of course there’s no ability to monetise the curative power of plain water upon the common cold.
Firebrick Pharma share price from Google Finance
Tackling the common cold would - if it worked - produce something of great value of course. We also tend to think that would be very difficult. The usual thought is that colds are caused by some 200 different things - virii, rhinovirii and even, yes, varied covids. They also mutate at an alarming rate. So something that “cures” is unlikely. While of course it might well be possible to divine something that will alleviate some symptoms.
The problem here is that, quite obviously, this particular formulation doesn’t work. Ah, well. This is, after all, the point and purpose of all that pharma testing - to find out what does work.
We have to admit we did like this question from a month back: “Is Firebrick Pharma (ASX:FRE) In A Good Position To Invest In Growth?” Err - no.