Friday's Health Winners & Losers

Updated from 1:57 p.m. EDT

Health care and pharmaceutical stocks generally tracked the broader market higher Friday, with EpiCept(EPCT Quote) helping to lead the charge with a 10.6% surge in shares.

EpiCept released study results that indicate its cancer drug Azixa is effective in treating multiple types of human tumors in mice. The data appear in the June 15 edition of Cancer Research. EpiCept, which licenses Azixa to Myriad Genetics(MYGN Quote), said the drug is undergoing evaluation in two phase II clinical trials, one in patients with primary brain cancer and the other in brain metastases due to melanoma. Shares of EpiCept closed up 23 cents at $2.41, while Myriad closed up 75 cents, or 2%, at $38.02.

Also getting a boost from the release of study results Friday was Novartis(NVS Quote), which rose 1.8% on news its painkiller lumiracoxib had less impact on blood pressure than ibuprofen in patients with osteoarthritis. The results, presented today at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology in Barcelona, are important, said Novartis, because some 40% of patients with osteoarthritis also have high blood pressure. The cox-2 inhibitor is currently under review in the U.S. to treat osteoarthritis. Shares of the Swiss drugmaker closed up $1 at $55.96.

Analyst upgrades also helped lift the sector. Kendle International(KNDL Quote) surged 7.4% after Jefferies & Co. upgraded shares of the clinical research to buy from hold. Cowen & Co. upgraded reproductive diagnostics company Inverness Medical Innovations(IMA Quote) to neutral from underperform. Kendle closed up $2.49 to $36.20, and Inverness was up 85 cents, or 1.7%, at $51.06.

The Nasdaq Biotechnology Index was up 1.1%, the Amex Biotechnology Index was up 1.2%, and the Amex Pharmaceutical Index was up 1%.