A Vertex Pharmaceuticals drug viewed as a successor to a non-opioid pill that won a landmark FDA approval earlier this year has failed a mid-stage clinical trial, dealing a setback to the company’s strategy of building a pain drug franchise to diversify its revenue streams.

Based on the clinical trial results, Vertex will not advance the drug, VX-993, to Phase 3 testing as a monotherapy for treating acute pain, the company announced after Monday’s market close.

The pain approach of Boston-based Vertex focuses on blocking sodium channels, pathways in the peripheral nervous system that transmit pain signals. By blocking these signals in the periphery, this approach is intended to avoid the addiction risks posed by opioid drugs that hit targets in the central nervous system.

VX-993 is de

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