Ocera Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:OCRX) reported that it is going to announce more encouraging information Phase 2b STOP-HE research on intravenous (IV) OCR-002 in hospitalized Hepatic Encephalophathy (HE) patients during the Cowen and Company Annual Healthcare Conference.
The success story of OCR-002
The company had already made a report in January about the Phase 1 research on orally administered OCR-002 to patients affected by chronic liver cirrhosis. At the moment there are no drugs for the treatment of HE that can be administered intravenously to hospitalized patients with acute HE. OCR-002 is increasingly making considerable progress to be a promising ammonia scavenger therapy that is being explored for HE.
Target market size and other factors
The formulation is being designed to be administered as both intravenously as well as orally. The target market size is estimated at $2.0 billion in the U.S. OCR-002 has also achieved orphan drug designation and Fast Track position by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. This can only mean that it has an exclusive 7 years of existence in the market.
Running out of cash
The company expects that it will manage to accumulate enough cash to push it through its operations into the second quarter of 2018. This is based on the current operating plan and resetting the priorities of its development goals. The company might be forced to raise more capital through debt or equity. This is to enable it to proceed with its ongoing research and development objectives.
Potential for growth
The business risk profile of the company is expected to gain significantly from the competitive and expanding HE market size, multiple nodes of drug administration, superior OCR-002 clinical profile as well as the high probability of being reimbursed. Investors are very bullish about the probability of growth of the company. This can be related to the fact that the Biotech sector has shown enormous strength in 2017 compared to 2016. It is also backed by a boost in the election outcome and expectations for significant reforms in tax and regulatory sectors and the overall M&A activities. The company’s shares have also significantly gained in the recent past. OCRX reported a gain in the share price based by the announcements hence laying a strong foundation for the company’s growth.
