UDPATE 1-Novartis' Tasigna beats Glivec in leukaemia trial

* Meets main target in late stage trial

* Anti-arthritis drug prevents pain in gout patients

(Wraps gout news, adds details

ZURICH, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG's (NOVN.VX) Tasigna drug met its main target in a late-stage, head-to-head trial against the company's Glivec as a first line treatment against chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML).

Novartis also said on Tuesday its anti-arthritis drug ACZ885 showed better pain relief and flare prevention for patients with chronic gout than an injectable corticosteroid in a mid-stage trial. [ID:nZAT010552]

Tasigna had faster and deeper responses than Glivec -- another Novartis product -- in adults with newly diagnosed Philadelphia chromosome-positive CML in chronic phase.

Tasigna is approved in CML -- a cancer of the blood and bone marrow in which the body produces cancerous white blood cells -- in patients who no longer respond to Glivec, currently Novartis' second biggest seller.

Almost all patients with CML have an abnormality known as the Philadelphia chromosome, which produces a protein that causes malignant white blood cells to proliferate. (Reporting by Sam Cage; Editing by Mike Nesbit)