Elan shares plunge as another patient dies

June 2, 2005

Irish biotech firm Élan has seen its shares plunge this morning after it revealed that a fourth patient taking its new multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri had contracted a fatal brain disease.

Whilst US stock markets have not yet opened for business, Athlone based Élan has suffered a 22% drop on the Irish Stock Exchange and a 21.5% drop on the London Stock Exchange. That means that so far today the firms market value has dropped by over €400mm to €1.9bn. The firm was once valued at over €20bn before the failure of Tysabri and an accounting investigation.

Élan was once one of Ireland's biggest business success stories. Élan still employs over 2,000 people in Ireland and reported revenues of $464.0 million in 2004.