July 18 (Reuters) - Bristol Myers Squibb ( BMY ) said on

Friday its blockbuster drug Reblozyl in combination with another

therapy failed to meet the main goal of a late-stage trial to

treat anemia due to a rare bone marrow cancer.

The study did not achieve statistically significant results

in helping patients become free from red blood cell transfusions

for any 12-week period during the first 24 weeks of treatment.

However, more patients receiving Reblozyl saw a reduction in

the number of transfusions needed and an increase in hemoglobin

levels, a key measure of anemia, the company said. The side

effects seen in the trial were similar to those previously

reported for Reblozyl.

Reblozyl is already approved for certain types of anemia

related to other blood disorders, including myelodysplastic

syndromes and beta thalassemia. Bristol Myers recorded $1.77

billion in global sales of Reblozyl in 2024.

In the late-stage trial, the drug was being tested to

treat anemia in myelofibrosis patients with a Janus kinase

inhibitor drug, a class of medicines that works by slowing down

the immune system.

Myelofibrosis is a type of cancer, in which the bone

marrow becomes scarred and doesn't produce enough healthy blood

cells.