JAKinibs have been linked with an increased risk of HZ in patients with RA. To this end, Winthrop, et al. evaluated data from six Phase III clinical trials to determine the incidence of HZ in the upadacitinib (UPA)-treated patients with RA and identify potential risk factors for the development of HZ in these patients.Analysis of data provides further support for the need for continued vigilance and monitoring for signs of herpes zoster (HZ) in patients receiving UPA, particularly in Asian popul...
Analysis of data over 56 weeks shows that efficacy responses are maintained with upadacitinib 15 mg and 30 mg.Following the publication of 12-week data from the Phase III, randomised double-blind, SELECT-PsA 1 study, earlier this year, McInnes, et al. now report the 56-week efficacy and safety data of upadacitinib 15 mg and 30 mg in patients with PsA and an inadequate response to non-biological therapyEfficacy responses and inhibition of radiographic progression were maintained with upadacitinib...

September 2021

Ozanimod as induction therapy and maintenance therapy for ulcerative colitis

N Engl J Med 2021;385:1280–91 doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2033617

Patients receiving ozanimod displayed a significant improvement in clinical response and all secondary endpoints during both the 10-week induction and 52-week maintenance study periods. Percentage of patients achieving clinical remission at Weeks 10 and 52 was the primary endpoint.

Post hoc analysis of the phase III FINCH study shows that filgotinib may be an alternative treatment option for patients with RA who have poor prognostic factors (PPFs), especially those not responding to standard treatment such as methotrexate (MTX).PPFs are associated with severe disease and risk for disease progression in patients with RA. Consequently, the 2019 EULAR management guidelines for RA recommend early treatment escalation for patients with PPFs who have inadequate response to first...

August 2021

Upadacitinib treatment results in statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements in health-related quality of life.Strand, et al. evaluated the effect of upadacitinib monotherapy versus methotrexate (MTX) on patient-reported outcomes (PRO) in MTX-naïve and MTX-inadequate responder patients with moderately-to-severely active RA. Their research from the SELECT-EARLY and SELECT-MONOTHERAPY randomised controlled trials found that upadacitinib monotherapy resulted in clinically mean...

July 2021

Fifty-six-week data suggest that upadacitinib could be a favourable long-term treatment option in patients with PsA who are refractory to biologic therapy.As the need for additional therapeutic agents that can effectively control disease activity continues, new data from a 56-week analysis of the oral reversible JAK1 inhibitor, upadacitinib, currently under investigation for the treatment of PsA, shows that efficacy of the drug is maintained over the duration of this study.Mease, et al. explored...

Bimekizumab versus adalimumab in plaque psoriasis

N Engl J Med 2021; 385:130–41. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2102388

Bimekizumab was noninferior and superior to adalimumab with respect to PASI 90 response and IGA score at Week 16. Bimekizumab is a promising IL-17A/F inhibitor that has shown clinical improvement in PsO patients compared to placebo and other IL inhibitors. Warren et al. compared the safety and efficacy of bimekizumab with adalimumab in a 56-week double-blind trial.

June 2021

Analysis by Wells, et al. demonstrates long-term efficacy and tolerability of baricitinib 2 mg daily for up to 120 weeks in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.Using data from two completed phase III studies, RA-BEAM (csDMARD-IR patients) and RA-BEACON (TNFi-IR patients), and one ongoing long-term extension study (RA-BEYOND), results demonstrated that the long-term maintenance of clinically relevant treatment goals, including LDA, remission and normative physical function, is achievable with bari...

May 2021

Study shows that conversions from FACIT-F to PROMIS Fatigue are feasible and applicable for RA clinical trials.The Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy–Fatigue (FACIT-F), developed for use in cancer patients, has been validated for measuring fatigue in RA, and is often the tool used in European clinical trials; with 10 out of its 13 items being relevant for patients with RA. The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS), developed and calibrated in the United ...

April 2021

Filgotinib, a Novel JAK1-Preferential Inhibitor for the Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis: An Overview from Clinical Trials

Mod Rheumatol. 2021 Mar 19:1-26. Epub ahead of print. DOI 10.1080/14397595.2021.1902617

Filgotinib is the latest JAKinib to enter the international market for the treatment of RA, receiving regulatory approval in Japan and Europe late last year. In this review paper, Tanaka Y et al. examine the clinical evidence supporting its use as a later-line treatment, in accordance with international RA management guidelines, and provide their expert opinions on JAKinibs from a clinical perspective.The core clinical programme evaluating filgotinib in patients with moderately-to-severely activ...