Beneath the Surface: Addressing JAK inhibitor safety in alopecia with Brett King, MD, PhD

Beneath the Surface is a video series in which Joel M. Gelfand, MD, MSCE, Healio Dermatology Chief Medical Editor, discusses hot topics in the field with leading experts.

In this edition, Gelfand, who is also the James J. Leyden Professor of Clinical Investigation and professor of dermatology and epidemiology at University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine, discusses the safety of Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors for the treatment of alopecia areata with Brett King, MD, PhD, associate professor of dermatology at Yale University School of Medicine and a member of Healio Dermatology’s Peer Perspective Board.

JAK inhibitors carry a boxed warning for an increased risk of stroke, malignancy, infections, blood clots and death, based on a study of oral tofacitinib for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, King said.

Due to these potential risks, he advises in-depth conversations with patients, as well as extensive pretreatment questions, to determine if a JAK inhibitor is right for the individual to treat their alopecia.

“It doesn’t matter how effective a medicine is if we aren’t comfortable with its safety profile,” he said.

In this video interview, King goes into detail regarding this discussion, as well as how to discuss monitoring patients on JAK inhibitors and the conversations needed regarding medication pauses.

Reference:

• FDA requires warnings about increased risk of serious heart-related events, cancer, blood clots, and death for JAK inhibitors that treat certain chronic inflammatory conditions. https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-requires-warnings-about-increased-risk-serious-heart-related-events-cancer-blood-clots-and-death. Updated December 2021. Accessed May 21, 2024.