Psoriatic Arthritis Treatment Shows No Joint Damage Progression

Cosentyx found to maintain improvements in joint and skin disease, physical function, and quality of life in PsA patients.

A new class of medications for psoriatic arthritis (PsA) showed significantly positive results during a recent clinical trial.

Novartis announced Monday results from the extension phase of the FUTURE 1 study showing treatment with secukinumab (Cosentyx) produced no further joint damage progression among 84% of PsA patients evaluated.

Furthermore, patients treated with Cosentyx maintained a response in joint and skin disease, physical function, and quality of life over the 2-year trial period.

Cosentyx is an interleukin-17A (IL-17A) inhibitor, which was the first of this new drug class approved by the FDA to show efficacy in late stage trials.

“Psoriatic arthritis patients need therapies that can prevent the progression of this debilitating disease. In this 2-year study, Cosentyx showed no further progression in joint damage in over 80% of PsA patients while maintaining improvements in joint and skin disease, physical function, and quality of life,” said Vasant Narasimhan, global head of Development at Novartis Pharmaceuticals. “These results show the potential for Cosentyx to create an important new option for the treatment of psoriatic arthritis.”

New PsA treatments are imperative for numerous patients unable to achieve an adequate response from current treatments, including disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs, non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, and anti-tumor necrosis factor therapies.

The study noted that approximately 45% of PsA patients are not happy with their current therapies, as many do not respond to or tolerate these treatments.

Cosentyx is a human monoclonal antibody that selectively neutralizes circulating IL-17A11, which is thought to be a key factor in driving the immune response to psoriasis, PsA, and AS14.

The 2-year, multi-center, randomized, placebo-controlled study included 606 patients with active PsA administered Cosentyx with intravenous loading (10 mg/kg) and subcutaneous (75 mg and 150 mg) maintenance dosing.

The primary endpoint of the trial compared the efficacy of Cosentyx compared with placebo in patients achieving ACR 20, as determined by the American College of Rheumatology response criteria, at week 24.

From Week 16, patients in the placebo group were re-randomized to receive Cosentyx 150 mg or 75 mg at either Week 16 or Week 24 based on clinical response.

Following 2 years of treatment, 67% of patients (n=202) administered Cosentyx at 150 mg achieved the standard treatment goal of ACR 20.

Furthermore, 84% of patients experienced no further joint damage progression in an x-ray assessment. Cosentyx was also found to be well tolerated by patients in the trial.