By Elias Schisgall

Fulcrum Therapeutics will stop developing a sickle cell disease treatment and will launch a review of strategic alternatives for the clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company.

The move to end the development of pociredir comes after the Food and Drug Administration expressed concerns about the drug's benefit-risk profile, the company said Monday.

Shares of Fulcrum plummeted 48% to $3.36 in after-hours trading Monday. The stock closed down 7.2% at $6.42, down 43% this year.

FDA officials brought up a high rate of blood cancers associated with Tazverik, a cancer medication which targets a similar group of genes as pociredir. That drug's manufacturer, Ipsen, pulled it from the market in March, citing the heightened blood cancer risks.

Though Fulcrum highlighted mechanistic differences between the targets of the two drugs, the agency "concluded that any pharmacological intervention targeting the PRC2 complex carries equivalent malignancy risk regardless of the specific subunit engaged," the company said.

The discussions with the FDA "left no viable path forward for further clinical development of pociredir," the company said.

In its strategic review, Fulcrum said it will consider alternatives including mergers, acquisitions or other strategic transactions involving the company and its assets. The company has also "initiated efforts to significantly reduce its operating expenses and preserve capital," it said.

Fulcrum ended March with $333.3 million in cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities.

Write to Elias Schisgall at elias.schisgall@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 01, 2026 16:21 ET (20:21 GMT)

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