Oct 27 (Reuters) – Artiva Biotherapeutics said on Tuesday it would halt the development of its experimental cell therapy for certain autoimmune conditions after two deaths among patients who were being tested on the treatment, sending its shares down 30% in premarket trading.
The therapy developer is also reducing its workforce by about 94% and evaluating strategic alternatives, it said.
Here are more details:
• Artiva’s therapy AlloNK was being tested as a potential treatment for autoimmune conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis in a mid-stage trial
• Artiva said one of the patients in the trial experienced a fatal neurological event following treatment
• The investigator and an independent safety review assessed the event as likely related to complications caused by the chemotherapy drug fludarabine, the company said
• A second patient in the trial experienced sudden death about two months after initiating treatment, which an investigator assessed as unrelated to AlloNK, Artiva added
• “After careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to discontinue development of AlloNK and to pursue strategic alternatives,” said CEO Fred Aslan
• As of September 30, Artiva had about $319.1 million in cash, cash equivalents and investments
• As of December 31, 2025, the company had 104 full-time employees, according to its annual filing
(Reporting by Christy Santhosh in Bengaluru; Editing by Jonathan Ananda)
