Helus Pharma (NASDAQ:HELP) shares are down on Thursday following the announcement of topline results from a Phase 2 signal detection study for HLP004, a potential treatment for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).

Helus Pharma was originally founded as Cybin Inc. in 2019.

Anxiety Disorder Data

In the Phase 2 study, 36 patients were randomized to receive either HLP004 or a placebo. Results indicated a 10.4-point improvement in anxiety symptoms beyond standard care treatments.

The drug showed a favorable tolerability profile with no drug-related serious adverse events or suicidality-related safety signals.

Helus Pharma Drug Shows Durable Remission

At six months, the pooled study population showed 67% responders and 39% remitters. 

Participants randomized to both 20 mg and 2mg dosing arms experienced meaningful subjective effects.

Participants showed clinically significant responses over standard care, with 59% meeting the criteria for response and 32% for remission in the 20mg arm and a 30% responder and remitter rate in the 2mg arm at week 6.

Competition

Recently, AtaiBeckley Inc. (NASDAQ:ATAI) reported topline results from an exploratory Phase 2a trial of EMP-01 for Social Anxiety Disorder.

49% of patients receiving EMP-01 were rated as "very much improved" or "much improved," compared to only 15% in the placebo group, indicating a clinically meaningful improvement.

Vistagen Inc.’s (NASDAQ:VTGN) PALISADE-3 Phase 3 study of intranasal fasedienol for the acute treatment of social anxiety disorder did not achieve its primary endpoint.

Helus Pharma’s Technical Analysis

The stock is currently trading 10.43% below its 20-day simple moving average (SMA) and 12.5% below its 100-day SMA, indicating a bearish trend in the short to medium term.

Shares have decreased 5.2% over the past 12 months and are positioned closer to their 52-week lows than highs.

The RSI is at 50.00, which is considered neutral territory, suggesting neither overbought nor oversold conditions. Meanwhile, MACD is at 0.10, below its signal line at 0.15, indicating bearish pressure on the stock.

The combination of neutral RSI and bearish MACD suggests mixed momentum.

• Key Resistance: $8.00
• Key Support: $7.50

HELP Price Action: Helus Pharma shares were down 33.19% at $6.41 at the time of publication on Thursday, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Image via Shutterstock