Relacorilant and Cardiometabolic Outcomes

Posted on September 25, 2025 by MaryO

New data on relacorilant (Corcept Therapeutics), a selective glucocorticoid receptor modulator, revealed several cardiometabolic benefits for patients with hypercortisolism.

Researchers presented results from the GRACE and GRADIENT trials, which assessed relacorilant in adults with hypercortisolism. GRACE was an open-label trial that enrolled adults with endogenous hypercortisolism, whereas GRADIENT included those with adrenal hypercortisolism and randomly assigned participants to relacorilant or placebo.

Both trials demonstrated similar reductions in body weight. The relacorilant group in GRADIENT had a 3.6 kg reduction in body weight, and adults in GRACE reduced their body weight by 3.3 kg at 22 weeks.

“Relacorilant may improve many of the common features of hypercortisolism, which may provide a holistic benefit to our patients,” Oksana Hamidi, DO, MSCS, study investigator and associate professor in the division of endocrinology at UT Southwestern Medical Center, told Healio | Endocrine Today. “An interesting observation was that relacorilant can lead to weight loss, and that weight loss is mostly fat mass, with lean mass being preserved or even increasing. The ability to maintain muscle is particularly important for our patients.”

In a cardiometabolic analysis, adults with hypertension receiving relacorilant had greater reductions in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure compared with placebo. For adults with hyperglycemia at baseline, the relacorilant group had greater declines in fasting glucose and glucose area under the curve.

Corin Badiu, MD, study investigator, professor of endocrinology and head of the department of endocrinology IV in the National Institute of Endocrinology and “C.Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Bucharest, Romania, and fellow of the Romanian Academy of Medical Sciences, said the benefits of relacorilant may extend into additional areas that could be studied in the future.

“Apart from metabolic and cardiovascular improvements, we expect long-term improvements in bone mass, liver steatosis, mood, sleep and other behavioral aspects [that] are disturbed in hypercortisolism,” Badiu told Healio | Endocrine Today.

Irina Bancos, MD, MSc, professor of medicine in the division of endocrinology, metabolism and nutrition at Mayo Clinic, said relacorilant could provide benefits similar to mifepristone (Korlym, Corcept Therapeutics) for patients with hypercortisolism, but with fewer adverse events related to progesterone health. Bancos was not involved with the trial.

“Why is there a need for another medication in the same class by the same company? The major reason is to achieve the same metabolic impact as far as weight loss and improvement of hyperglycemia … but also to decrease the side effects,” Bancos told Healio | Endocrine Today.

From https://www.healio.com/news/endocrinology/20250912/promising-new-data-could-change-treatment-landscape-for-some-rare-diseases?utm_source=selligent&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20250920ENDO&utm_content=20250920ENDO

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Novel Cushing’s Syndrome Drug Improves Hypertension, Hyperglycemia

Posted on July 18, 2025 by MaryO

The investigational selective glucocorticoid receptor modulator relacorilant led to improvements in blood pressure, fasting glucose, and weight for patients with adrenal hypercortisolism, a pair of phase III studies showed.

In pooled data from the GRACE and GRADIENT trials, adults with adrenal hypercortisolism and hypertension on relacorilant had a significant decrease in systolic and diastolic blood pressure measured by 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (-10.1 and -6.3 mm Hg, respectively) compared with placebo (1.5 and 2.2 mm Hg, respectively; both P<0.01), according to Corin Badiu, MD, PhD, of the Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy and National Institute of Endocrinology in Bucharest, Romania.

At week 22, relacorilant patients had an average blood pressure of 128/81 mm Hg compared with 135/84 mm Hg with placebo, Badiu reported at ENDO 2025, the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society.

As for those with hyperglycemia with or without hypertension at baseline, relacorilant significantly improved fasting glucose and glucose area under the curve (-0.7 and -2.4 mmol/L per hour, respectively) compared with placebo (0.4 and 1.3 mmol/L per hour, respectively; both P<0.05).

Relacorilant-treated participants also lost 4.1 kg (9 lb) compared with 1 kg (2.2 lb) in placebo patients (P<0.01).

“We expected a good hypertension control and an improved control of diabetes [with relacorilant],” Badiu told MedPage Today.

Acting as a selective cortisol modulator, relacorilant works by binding to the glucocorticoid receptor but not to other hormone receptors in the body. It was granted orphan drug designation by the FDA.

It works differently than other agents indicated for endogenous hypercortisolism (also known as Cushing’s syndrome) like the nonselective glucocorticoid receptor antagonist mifepristone (Korlym), which can be difficult to use given its drug-drug interactions and side effects like endometrial hypertrophy and vaginal bleeding.

If approved, relacorilant could be a treatment option for patients with mild autonomous hypercortisolism with resistant hypertension or difficult-to-treat diabetes who are avoiding or reluctant to surgery, or have had previous unsuccessful surgery, said Badiu.

Because metabolic issues are so prevalent in endogenous hypercortisolism, Badiu advised healthcare providers to take “an active attitude for screening for endogenous autonomous hypercortisolism in every individual patient with metabolic syndrome.”

After confirmation of an endogenous hypercortisolism diagnosis, providers should present all available treatment options from surgery to medical treatment in a personalized manner, using multidisciplinary management — cardiology, endocrinology, imaging, surgery, rheumatology, psychology, etc. — in order to make appropriate decisions, he recommended.

The GRACE and GRADIENT trials recruited participants ages 18 to 80 with endogenous hypercortisolism along with hypertension, hyperglycemia (defined as impaired glucose tolerance or diabetes), or both.

At baseline, patients given relacorilant had an average weight of 88.6 kg (195.3 lb) and waist circumference was 110.9 cm. Those with hypertension with or without hyperglycemia had average 24-hour systolic and diastolic blood pressures of 139.1 mm Hg and 86.4 mm Hg, respectively. For those with hyperglycemia with or without hypertension, average HbA1c was 6.5%, glucose area under the curve was 23.6 mmol/L per hour, and 2-hour oral glucose tolerance test was 11.8 mmol/L.

Participants on relacorilant had their dose titrated from 100 mg to 400 mg once daily based on tolerability and efficacy.

Treatment was safe and well-tolerated among patients, said Badiu, with no new emerging safety signal. Most adverse events were mild to moderate in severity.

As for adverse events of interest, there were no cases of relacorilant-induced irregular vaginal bleeding with endometrial hypertrophy or adrenal insufficiency, no events of relacorilant-induced QT prolongation, and no increases in cortisol concentrations and relacorilant-induced hypokalemia.

“Lack of hypokalemia as an adverse event was an additional positive finding,” said Badiu. “Some long-term effects on mood, sleep behavior, coagulation profile, bone metabolism, liver steatosis, and body composition are still subject to detailed analysis.”

Developer Corcept Therapeutics submitted a new drug application for relacorilant to the FDA late last year; a decision on approval is expected by the end of 2025. The drug is also currently being studied for ovarian, adrenal, and prostate cancers.

From https://www.medpagetoday.com/meetingcoverage/endo/116508

 

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Corcept’s relacorilant GRADIENT trial misses primary endpoint

Posted on November 6, 2024 by MaryO

Corcept Therapeutics has shared some results from its Phase III GRADIENT trial for relacorilant – its experimental treatment for Cushing’s syndrome caused by adrenal gland pathology.

The trial will be used alongside data from the earlier GRACE trial to support the company’s new drug application (NDA) submission this quarter. However, it missed its primary endpoint.

The complete results of the company’s GRADIENT trial will be presented at a medical conference next year, but current results – released on 30 October – demonstrate that there was no statistically significant difference in hypertension in relacorilant and placebo patients.

The randomised double-blind trial included 137 patients across sites in the US, Europe and Israel. Over 22 weeks, half of the patients received relacorilant while the other half received a placebo.

The trial’s primary endpoint was the improvement in systolic blood pressure (SBP) compared to placebo. Its secondary endpoints were concerned with hyperglycemia, weight and body composition.

Mean SBP saw a reduction of 6.6 mm Hg in relacorilant patients compared to baseline. This is in contrast to a reduction of 2.1 mm Hg in placebo patients. The difference between these results was not statistically significant.

However, Corcept’s GRADIENT trial did meet some secondary endpoints and was well-tolerated. Patients taking relacorilant exhibited clinically meaningful and statistically significant improvements in hypertension, hyperglycemia, weight and body composition compared to baseline. In contrast, placebo patients did not.

Cushing’s syndrome is caused by an excess of cortisol and primarily affects those using steroid medications, which contain a synthetic version of the hormone. The condition is characterised by an increase of fat (particularly on the neck and shoulders), a change in face shape, stretch marks and skin which bruises easily. Cushing’s syndrome can also cause hypertension.

Corcept Therapeutics also shared that relacorilant was well-tolerated in the GRADIENT trial. It reported that there were no cases of relacorilant-induced hypokalemia, endometrial hypertrophy or related vaginal bleeding, adrenal insufficiency or QT prolongation.

The NDA submission for relacorilant for Cushing’s syndrome is expected this quarter. The GRADIENT trial will support results from the company’s GRACE trial, which were shared in June. The GRACE trial included 152 patients and met its primary endpoint of loss of hypertension control in the randomised-withdrawal phase.

Considering the results of the GRADIENT trial, Corcept Therapeutics’ chief development officer Bill Guyer said: “GRADIENT’s positive results in patients with Cushing’s syndrome confirm relacorilant’s promise as a significant medical advancement for the treatment of this deadly disease. As was true in the GRACE study, patients in GRADIENT who received relacorilant experienced clinically meaningful improvements in a broad range of hypercortisolism signs and symptoms, without suffering some of the serious adverse effects that can arise in patients taking currently approved treatments.

“These data will be a powerful addition to relacorilant’s NDA, which we plan to submit by year-end.”

https://www.clinicaltrialsarena.com/news/corcepts-relacorilant-gradient-trial-misses-primary-endpoint/?cf-view

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Corcept Completes Enrollment in Phase 3 Gradient Trial of Relacorilant in Patients With Adrenal Cushing’s Syndrome

Posted on April 3, 2024 by MaryO

Corcept Therapeutics Incorporated (NASDAQ: CORT), a commercial-stage company engaged in the discovery and development of medications to treat severe endocrinologic, oncologic, metabolic and neurologic disorders by modulating the effects of the hormone cortisol, today announced completion of enrollment in GRADIENT, a Phase 3 trial of its proprietary selective cortisol modulator relacorilant in patients with Cushing’s syndrome (hypercortisolism) caused by an adrenal adenoma or adrenal hyperplasia.

“Hypercortisolism with adrenal etiology affects many patients and is associated with serious cardiometabolic comorbidities, including hypertension and hyperglycemia, and increased risk of premature death,” said Bill Guyer, PharmD, Corcept’s Chief Development Officer. “GRADIENT is the first prospective placebo-controlled study to be conducted exclusively in these patients with Cushing’s syndrome. We expect data from GRADIENT in the fourth quarter of this year.”

GRADIENT is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial conducted at sites in the United States, Europe and Israel. One-hundred thirty-seven patients were randomized 1:1 to receive relacorilant or placebo for 22 weeks. Primary endpoints are improvement in glucose metabolism and hypertension.

About Cushing’s Syndrome (Hypercortisolism)
Cushing’s syndrome is caused by excessive activity of the hormone cortisol. Endogenous Cushing’s syndrome is an orphan disease that most often affects adults aged 20-50. Symptoms vary, but most patients experience one or more of the following manifestations: high blood sugar, diabetes, high blood pressure, upper-body obesity, rounded face, increased fat around the neck, thinning arms and legs, severe fatigue and weak muscles. Irritability, anxiety, cognitive disturbances and depression are also common. Cushing’s syndrome can affect every organ system and can be lethal if not treated effectively.

About Relacorilant
Relacorilant is a selective cortisol modulator that binds to the glucocorticoid receptor (GR), but does not bind to the body’s other hormone receptors. Corcept is studying relacorilant in a variety of serious disorders, including ovarian, adrenal and prostate cancer and Cushing’s syndrome. Relacorilant is proprietary to Corcept and is protected by composition of matter, method of use and other patents. Relacorilant has orphan drug designation in the United States and the European Union for the treatment of Cushing’s syndrome.

About Corcept Therapeutics
For over 25 years, Corcept’s focus on cortisol modulation and its potential to treat patients across a wide variety of serious disorders has led to the discovery of more than 1,000 proprietary selective cortisol modulators. Corcept’s advanced clinical trials are being conducted in patients with hypercortisolism, solid tumors, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and liver disease (NASH). In February 2012, the company introduced Korlym, the first medication approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of patients with Cushing’s syndrome. Corcept is headquartered in Menlo Park, California. For more information, visit Corcept.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
Statements in this press release, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements based on our current plans and expectations that are subject to risks and uncertainties that might cause our actual results to differ materially from those such statements express or imply. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, our ability to operate our business; risks related to the study and development of Korlym as well as relacorilant, miricorilant, dazucorilant and our other product candidates, including their clinical attributes, regulatory approvals, mandates, oversight and other requirements; and the scope and protective power of our intellectual property. These and other risks are set forth in our SEC filings, which are available at our website and the SEC’s website.

In this press release, forward-looking statements include those concerning the development of relacorilant as a treatment for Cushing’s syndrome, and design, timing and expectations regarding our GRADIENT trial. We disclaim any intention or duty to update forward-looking statements made in this press release.

From https://finance.yahoo.com/news/corcept-completes-enrollment-phase-3-120000179.html

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Relacorilant Effectively Manages Cortisol Effects in Cushing’s Patients

Posted on May 12, 2018 by MaryO

Relacorilant, an investigational therapy developed by Corcept Therapeutics, may effectively manage the effects of excess cortisol in patients with Cushing’s syndrome, interim data from an ongoing Phase 2 trial show.

In particular, the treatment significantly improved sugar tolerance and the levels of osteocalcin, a bone growth biomarker  commonly suppressed by excess cortisol.

Corcept announced in a press release that the trial (NCT02804750) has completed patient enrollment. Results from the first patients will be presented during the upcoming 27th American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) annual meeting, May 16-20 in Boston. Full data is expected by the third quarter of 2018.

Relacorilant, also known as CORT125134, was designed to prevent the effects of excess cortisol by blocking one of its receptors, the glucocorticoid receptor.

In a Phase 1 trial with healthy volunteers, multiple doses of relacorilant had a similar effect as Korlym (mifepristone) — an approved medicine for Cushing’s patients — without its known side effects.

In addition to the early efficacy data, the study showed that the treatment was generally safe and well-tolerated by the patients, with adverse events reportedly mild in severity.

These findings supported the launch of the Phase 2 trial in patients with Cushing’s syndrome. In the trial, roughly 30 patients are receiving escalating doses of relacorilant for a total of 12 weeks.

Patients were divided into two groups. The first group, which includes 17 patients, receives the lowest dose — 100 mg/day of relacorilant for four weeks, followed by 150 mg/day for four weeks, and then 200 mg/day for the last four weeks. The second group, called the high-dose cohort, is treated with a similar regimen but with a starting dose of 250 mg/day and a final dose of 350 mg/day.

Patients in the low-dose group had a significant improvement in their glucose tolerance and a 60% increase in blood osteocalcin.

In addition, the treatment reduced the blood pressure in 45% of patients with uncontrolled high blood pressure from cortisol excess. Importantly, the results after 12 weeks of relacorilant were similar to those seen after six months of Korlym treatment.

Safety data continues to show a positive profile, with no evidence of serious adverse effects and no affinity toward the progesterone receptor, which is a major drawback of Korlym.

“Relacorilant’s clinical results are striking because the doses these patients received were the study’s lowest. We did not expect patients to experience any meaningful clinical benefit, but they clearly did,” Robert S. Fishman, MD, chief medical officer of Corcept, said in the release. “We look forward to presenting data from these low-dose patients at the AACE meeting next week. With the trial’s final, high-dose cohort fully enrolled, we will have final data in the third quarter.”

Supported by these preliminary data, Corcept has accelerated the preparations for a Phase 3 trial on relacorilant in Cushing’s syndrome patients.

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