Galectin Presents Noninvasive Liver Risk Data

Company analyses at AASLD Liver Meeting 2026 link belapectin treatment to lower variceal incidence in patients with liver disease.

Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in Healthcare

A single amber sample vial stands among rows of empty clear tubes on a pale laboratory bench in soft morning light. — Galectin Therapeutics presented new noninvasive liver risk analyses at the AASLD Liver Meeting 2026 in Denver and submitted a Phase 3 belapectin trial protocol to the FDA. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

Galectin Therapeutics presented new analyses on noninvasive prediction of variceal development at the AASLD Liver Meeting 2026 in Denver, Colorado, held November 5-9, 2026. The company also submitted a Phase 3 registration trial protocol to the FDA.

Why it matters

The analyses focus on identifying patients at risk of developing varices, a complication of liver disease, without invasive measurement. The findings support the company's planned Phase 3 trial design for belapectin.

In the NAVIGATE trial, belapectin was associated with a 15.9% placebo-adjusted improvement in predicted CSPH risk at 18 months (p=0.04), compared with placebo. The analyses are company-presented, and whether the noninvasive framework holds in the planned Phase 3 trial remains unknown.

The players

Galectin Therapeutics

Galectin Therapeutics is a Norcross, Georgia-based biopharmaceutical company developing belapectin for liver disease, and it holds Fast Track designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the drug.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is the federal agency that reviews and approves drugs and grants expedited designations such as Fast Track, and it received the company's Phase 3 registration trial protocol.

The details

Galectin Therapeutics delivered an oral presentation and two posters, one of which received a Poster of Distinction. The analyses compared noninvasive tools, including ANTICIPATE-NASH, Baveno VII criteria, and ELF score, against invasive HVPG measurement, and variceal incidence was consistently lower with belapectin across baseline risk categories.

November 5-9, 2026: AASLD Liver Meeting 2026 held in Denver, Colorado.
18 months: timepoint at which NAVIGATE CSPH risk improvement was measured.

Market Landscape

Belapectin holds Fast Track designation from the FDA, a pathway intended to speed development of drugs treating serious conditions. The company's move toward a Phase 3 registration trial, alongside its evaluation of strategic partnerships, positions the drug for its next development phase.

For people with chronic liver disease, a noninvasive way to estimate variceal risk could reduce reliance on invasive measurement in future care. The findings remain company-presented and would need validation in a Phase 3 trial before any change to standard practice.

The takeaway

Noninvasive risk tools may help identify which liver disease patients are most likely to develop varices. Whether these findings hold up in larger, independent trials is the question to watch.

What happens next

Galectin Therapeutics plans to incorporate the noninvasive risk-stratification framework into its planned Phase 3 trial, and is evaluating strategic partnerships for belapectin's next phase.