Never Too Late: Late-Breaking Abstracts Create Excitement

Orelabrutinib for SLE

In the final presentation, Zhanguo Li, MD, PhD, professor, chief of the Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Peking University People’s Hospital, Beijing, discussed orelabrutinib in the treatment of SLE. The medication is an irreversible inhibitor of Bruton’s tyrosine kinase, and in this study SRI(4) and SLE Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI) scores appeared to improve in patients receiving all three dose levels of orelabrutinib (i.e., 50, 80 and 100 mg by mouth daily) compared with placebo.⁶ This study presents orelabrutinib as a potentially efficacious agent in the treatment of SLE.

In Sum

In coming years, many potential therapeutics in rheumatology may be said to have found their footholds in these initial oral presentations.

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Jason Liebowitz, MD, completed his fellowship in rheumatology at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, where he also earned his medical degree. He is currently in practice with Skylands Medical Group, N.J.

References

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6. Li R, Zhu X, Liu S, et al. Orelabrutinib, an irreversible inhibitor of Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK), for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE): results of a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase IB/IIA dose-finding study [abstract LB0005]. Ann Rheum Dis. 2022;81(suppl 1):210.