UCB’s investigational IL-17A and IL-17F inhibitor outclasses Novartis’ Cosentyx in plaque psoriasis

pharmafile | July 24, 2020 | News story | Medical Communications, Research and Development Cosentyx, UCB, pharma, psoriasis 

UCB has revealed promising new data from a head-to-head trial pitting the company’s IL-17A and IL-17F inhibitor bimekizumab against Novartis’ IL-17A inhibitor Cosentyx (secukinumab) in the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis.

Bimekizumab was shown to outclass Cosentyx in achieving skin clearance after 16 weeks of treatment, represented by an improvement of 100% on the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI 100), hitting the study’s primary endpoint.

UCB’s therapy also met all off its secondary trial goals, proving superior to Cosentyx in achieving a PASI 75 score after four weeks of treatment, as well as a PASI 100 score at 48 weeks in both monthly and bi-monthly dosing regimens.

Professor Richard Warren of the Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust and The University of Manchester said the findings “mark the latest positive data readout for bimekizumab, confirming the hypothesis that targeting IL-17F, in addition to IL-17A, suppresses inflammation to a greater extent than IL-17A inhibition alone in psoriasis.”

Emmanuel Caeymaex, Executive Vice President Immunology Solutions and Head of US at UCB, also commented: “Psoriasis places a heavy burden on patients, often causing pain, discomfort and stigma. Patients may not get the complete skin clearance that they want and may not even realize that it’s possible. Healthcare providers may also feel forced to make trade-offs between therapies that work quickly, versus those that have shown durable efficacy. The BE RADIANT results demonstrate that bimekizumab has the potential to raise the treatment bar for patients and their dermatologists.”

UCB has not yet secured approval for bimekizumab anywhere in the world, but is trialling the drug’s safety and efficacy in a range of indications including psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis and hidradenitis suppurativa.

Matt Fellows

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