Janus Kinase Inhibitor

Patients with moderate to severe alopecia areata who were assigned to CTP-543, an oral Janus kinase inhibitor from Concert Pharmaceuticals, achieved a 50% relative reduction in Severity of Alopecia Tool score at 24 weeks, according to data presented at the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology Congress.

After undergoing surgery at a dermatologic surgery cancer center, patients had significantly less worry regarding cancer recurrence and its impact on daily life.

In alopecia areata, combination tofacitinib and oral minoxidil therapy may be superior to tofacitinib alone, according to researchers from Yale University School of Medicine, in the top Healio Dermatology story from last week.

Alopecia areata affects up to 6.8 million people in the U.S. and carries a 2.1% lifetime risk, according to the National Alopecia Areata Foundation. The foundation has dubbed September “Alopecia Areata Awareness Month” to increase awareness, spread empowerment and raise funds for research into this polygenic autoimmune disease.

Baricitinib met the primary endpoint in adults with moderate to severe atopic dermatitis in BREEZE-AD7, the third pivotal phase 3 trial of the BREEZE-AD program, which is expected to be completed later this year.

The FDA has approved upadacitinib, a 15-mg, once-daily oral JAK inhibitor, for the treatment of moderate-to-severe rheumatoid arthritis among patients who have had an inadequate response to methotrexate, according to an AbbVie press release.

In a landmark FDA approval, AbbVie’s upadacitinib has won the race to enter the drug market as the third JAK inhibitor approved for the treatment of moderate-to-severe rheumatoid arthritis, with the drug expected to be available in the United States within the month.

The American Academy of Dermatology Summer Meeting recently wrapped up in New York.

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis who previously had an inadequate response to biologic DMARDs demonstrated improved signs and symptoms after receiving daily doses of filgotinib, according to data published in JAMA.

John J. O’Shea, MD, is scientific director of the NIH’s National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, and chief of their Molecular Immunology and Inflammation Branch. In this ACR interview, he joins me to talk about the JAK/STAT pathway, what we’ve learned from mouse models, current FDA-approved JAK inhibitors and the future of this exciting field.