Corgentech Shares Rise in Premarket on Painkiller Study Data in Knee Replacement Patients

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif -- Shares of Corgentech Inc. climbed nearly 10 percent before the bell Wednesday, after the biotech drug maker said its experimental pain reliever significantly lowered pain scores during a mid-stage clinical trial in patients recovering from knee replacement surgeries.

Corgentech shares rose 84 cents, or 9.9 percent, to $9.34 in pre-market activity on the INET electronic exchange. Shares have traded between $6.51 and $10.85 over the past 52 weeks.

In a 50-person, Phase II study, patients recovering from surgery were given morphine and either the drug candidate "4975" or a placebo, and followed for 14 days.

On the first day, the average pain score -- on a scale from 1 to 10 -- was 5.4 for the treatment group and 7.1 for the placebo group. By Day 14, patients in the treatment group rated their "worst pain in the previous 24-hour period" an average 3.9, compared to the average rating of 5.9 in the placebo group.

Treatment 4975 is a long-acting, non-opioid pain reliever being developed for localized moderate-to-severe pain.