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Obicetrapib’s Results Show, MAR001 Progresses, and Fibrosis Inhibition
May 8, 2025
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Together with
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“The canonical view that ‘lower LDL-C is better’ without limit may be in part confounded because measured LDL-C includes cholesterol contained in lipoprotein(a); therefore, patients with low LDL-C are more likely to have low lipoprotein(a).”
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Steg et al.
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Cardiology Pharmaceuticals
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Results from NewAmsterdam Pharma’s Phase 3 BROADWAY and TANDEM trials suggest that obicetrapib could be an effective LDL-C lowering treatment, both on its own or combined with another drug.
TANDEM examined the effects of a fixed-dose obicetrapib/ezetimibe combination therapy and found…
- An LDL-C reduction of ~50% at day 84 of treatment compared to placebo.
- Over 70% of patients achieved LDL-C levels below 55mg/dL.
- Adverse events were similar to placebo.
BROADWAY put on a one-man show for obicetrapib as a monotherapy to help confirm its solo effectiveness, finding that the CETP inhibitor led to…
- An LDL-C reduction of 33% at day 84 compared to placebo.
- A 21% MACE risk reduction at one year follow-up.
Pooled data from the BROADWAY, TANDEM, and BROOKLYN trials also showed…
- A 45% median Lp(a) reduction in patients with Lp(a) baseline levels of 50-150 nmol/L.
The Takeaway
NewAmsterdam’s obicetrapib seems to be on track to provide high LDL-C patients with an effective alternative to statins following these Phase 3 results. That could be a big win for patients who suffer from genetic causes of high LDL-C if NewAmsterdam’s coming regulatory submissions succeed.
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Relieving The Burden of Post-Processing
With the advent of advanced imaging technologies like CCTA come added burdens to technologists and diagnostic imaging centers. See how PIA can relieve the burden of post-processing, saving you time while helping your bottom line.
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The CardioMEMS HF System is Now Covered by Medicare Advantage
Find reimbursement resources and more information about the expanded coverage for your heart failure patients if coverage criteria is met.
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Cardiology Pharmaceuticals
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Marea Therapeutics presented positive data from the Phase 2a clinical trial of its fat-targeting monoclonal antibody, MAR001, that could help address lipid and metabolic drivers of ASCVD.
- Originally developed by Novartis, MAR001 targets the ANGPTL4 protein in body fat tissue, which helps it lower remnant cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood.
To assess MAR001’s impact on remnant cholesterol and triglycerides, researchers randomized 55 patients with hypertriglyceridemia to one of three doses (150, 300, and 450mg) or placebo and found…
- An overall -52.5% mean reduction in remnant cholesterol and up to a -52.7% mean reduction in triglycerides at 12 weeks.
- Even greater reductions in remnant cholesterol and triglycerides (-66% and -64%) for patients with triglyceride levels ≥200 mg/dL at baseline.
These results help continue the momentum for Marea as it now plans to move MAR001 into Phase 2b trials in the second quarter of this year to evaluate its impact on metabolic dysfunction.
The Takeaway
Over five million cardiovascular patients in the U.S. have elevated remnant cholesterol, yet no approved treatment exists, so Marea’s consistent and positive results are a win, even if it takes time to get to market.
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Innovating AFib Care
The first manifestation of AFib is often stroke, but many hospitals aren’t set up to coordinate these patients’ post-stroke care. See how UCSD is leveraging Viz.ai’s Viz Connect solution to simplify neuro and EP collaboration in this HRX 2024 interview.
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- SRC Inhibition for Fibrosis: A Nature study analyzed human/mouse single-cell gene datasets and found that inhibiting the tyrosine kinase known as “SRC” could help treat cardiovascular fibrosis. Researchers tested a dual inhibition treatment of saracatinib and TGFβ suppression which helped alleviate contractile dysfunction in heart tissues with fibrosis by turning off the genes that fibroblast cells use to create fibrotic tissue.
- Cannabis and HF: New data presented at SCAI 2025 suggests HF patients who use too much cannabis could be at a much higher risk of MI or other significant CV complications. Researchers explored data from more than 1.3M hospitalized HF patients and found that those with cannabis use disorder were more likely to experience cardiogenic shock (+27%), acute MI (+50%), and arrhythmia (+48%). However, the data included a substantial surprise: cannabis use was associated with significantly lower odds of death or respiratory failure.
- DAPT or SAPT After TAVR? As TAVR gains momentum for treating severe AS patients, knowing which antiplatelet therapies to use following the procedure has never been more relevant. One SCAI late-breaker tracked data from more than 5k patients who were discharged after TAVR with either SAPT or DAPT, and found that SAPT was associated with a significantly lower all-cause mortality rate after six months (2.4% vs. 5.4%). SAPT was also linked to a much lower rate of major bleeding events (0.5% vs. 1.3%).
- GLP-1 Head-to-Head: Continuing with SCAI late-breakers, one study found that Eli Lilly’s tirzepatide leads to a much lower all-cause mortality rate than semaglutide in patients with T2D, CKD, and HF. Among 9k randomized patients, semaglutide was linked to a higher one-year risk of all-cause mortality, acute MI, ischemic stroke, and hospital readmission than tirzepatide. However, HbA1c levels were more likely to be under 7% for patients treated with semaglutide.
- BrightHeart’s Latest FDA Clearance: BrightHeart received FDA 510(k) clearance for updates to its BrightHeart platform that adds the capability for clinicians to access the BrightHeart ultrasound analysis software in real-time through a cart-side tablet. BrightHeart’s AI software specifically screens for congenital heart defects and will now be easier to use following the FDA clearance of its tablet interface. The company is preparing for the limited market release to deploy its BrightHeart platform in an exclusive set of clinics.
- TeleMed2U Buys SIGMA: Tele-specialty care company, TeleMed2U, acquired SIGMA Tactical Wellness, a company working to reduce cardiovascular risk in the public safety sector. With the acquisition, TeleMed2U will incorporate SIGMA’s cardiac risk screening to expand the company’s virtual condition detection and treatment capabilities for law enforcement and first responders. While financial details were not disclosed, TeleMed2U believes acquiring SIGMA will help reduce morbidity, taxpayer expenses, and aid in first responder retention and recruitment.
- AliveCor Launches New KardiaMobile: AliveCor launched its most advanced personal ECG system yet, the KardiaMobile 6L Max, alongside a new feature called KardiaAlert exclusively for its KardiaCare subscribers. KardiaMobile 6L Max provides in-depth reporting on ECGs, blood pressure, and weight data with remote access to board-certified cardiologists, while KardiaAlert compares every ECG exam against an established baseline ECG and scans for potential changes over time.
- Cleerly + Cardiac Care Alliance: Cleerly announced a new partnership to make its AI-powered coronary artery assessment technology available through Cardiac Care Alliance’s cardiovascular care network. As part of the partnership, Cardiac Care Alliance’s offering to payors and practices will now include Cleerly’s CCTA AI technology to ensure symptomatic patients can undergo noninvasive assessment prior to cardiac catheterization procedures. The initiative will launch with cardiology practices in Texas, with plans for broader implementation.
- SHINE Buys Lantheus SPECT Tracers: SHINE Technologies reached an agreement to acquire Lantheus’ SPECT radiopharmaceutical business, including its molybdenum-99m manufacturing, which is a precursor element for technetium-99m that are used for nuclear cardiology exams like Cardiolite. SHINE will produce Mo-99 as well as lutetium-177 at its Chrysalis large-scale irradiation facility in Wisconsin, scheduled to open in 2026.
- Cardiac MRI vs. Echo for AS: 4D flow cardiac MRI could be better than transthoracic echocardiography for predicting which aortic stenosis patients need intervention. Researchers examined 30 patients and found that 4D flow measures of peak aortic valve jet velocity predicted whether patients would need catheter- or surgery-based intervention (HR=2.51), while TTE-based continuous wave Doppler measurements had no statistically significant association. That said, Echo is far cheaper and more widely available than cardiac MRI.
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Vista AI Reduces Patient Backlog
Cardiac MRI is infamous for its complexity and backlogs, but it doesn’t need to be that way. See how Vista Cardiac delivered a 50% reduction in scan time variability, enabling shorter scheduling blocks and eliminating a one-month backlog.
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Configure Your PCI Study
See for yourself how cardiac imagers use GE HealthCare’s Centricity Cardio Enterprise Universal Viewer to do their PCI studies, including configurable viewport setup and side-by-side comparisons.
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- Experience the future of learning: Medtronic Academy 2.0 is here! Unlock your ultimate destination for structural heart medical education with the newly redesigned Medtronic Academy 2.0. Gain access to expert-led courses, webinars, and a wealth of resources to stay ahead in cardiovascular care. Visit now!
- CVIS and AI in Structural Heart Treatment: Harnessing the power of CVIS and AI to enhance your heart imaging is crucial in today’s fast-paced health care environment. See how Optum’s CVIS can support clinical workflows and meet the needs of EP and structural heart procedures.
- Addressing Coronary Artery Disease: Learn how the AGENT™ Drug-Coated Balloon provides a new treatment option for in-stent restenosis in the U.S. Rx Only. (Sponsored by Boston Scientific)
- How to Improve Cardiology Workflows and Get More Patient Time: Complex processes and reporting requirements can mean cardiologists spend more time with clinical systems than they do with their patients. See how Merge Hemo and Merge Cardio work together to help you streamline and scale your clinical and data management workflows, so you can have more time in front of your patients.
- The Monebo Difference in Comprehensive Cardiac Mapping: Monitoring the heart 24/7 means being in tune with the body’s natural cycles. Read about how Monebo’s approach to cardiac monitoring provides visual representations of a patient’s heart rate, cardiac muscle relaxation, and electrical excitation throughout the day.
- Echo Automation’s Big Impact: Improving clinician efficiency and quality is the goal for most AI solutions, but we rarely see AI achieve both. See how Juntendo University’s Dr. Nobuyuki Kagiyama achieved both of those goals, while reducing sonographer fatigue in the process.
- Personalized Plaque Analysis Now With Medicare Coverage: HeartFlow’s Plaque Analysis is now reimbursable thanks to Medicare’s new coverage for AI-enabled plaque analysis of eligible patients with coronary artery disease.
- Explore Vitrea Advanced Visualization: Discover Canon Medical Healthcare IT’s suite of advanced imaging workflows designed to increase efficiency in cardiovascular imaging, and facilitate the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of cardiovascular diseases. These cutting-edge tools support the delivery of faster, more accurate care while integrating seamlessly into clinical workflow.
- Identify and Treat Cardiovascular Disease: Complex care pathways make getting patients to the next step a challenge. See how Tempus Next, an AI enabled care pathway platform, helps providers identify and reduce under treatment in cardiovascular disease by adding an intelligent layer onto their routinely generated EHR data.
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