The Rheumatologist
COVID-19 News
  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed
  • Home
  • Conditions
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis
    • SLE (Lupus)
    • Crystal Arthritis
      • Gout Resource Center
    • Spondyloarthritis
    • Osteoarthritis
    • Soft Tissue Pain
    • Scleroderma
    • Vasculitis
    • Systemic Inflammatory Syndromes
    • Guidelines
  • Resource Centers
    • Ankylosing Spondylitis Resource Center
    • Gout Resource Center
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis Resource Center
    • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Resource Center
  • Drug Updates
    • Biologics & Biosimilars
    • DMARDs & Immunosuppressives
    • Topical Drugs
    • Analgesics
    • Safety
    • Pharma Co. News
  • Professional Topics
    • Ethics
    • Legal
    • Legislation & Advocacy
    • Career Development
      • Certification
      • Education & Training
    • Awards
    • Profiles
    • President’s Perspective
    • Rheuminations
  • Practice Management
    • Billing/Coding
    • Quality Assurance/Improvement
    • Workforce
    • Facility
    • Patient Perspective
    • Electronic Health Records
    • Apps
    • Information Technology
    • From the College
    • Multimedia
      • Audio
      • Video
  • Resources
    • Issue Archives
    • ACR Convergence
      • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Resource Center
      • Rheumatoid Arthritis Resource Center
      • Gout Resource Center
      • Abstracts
      • Meeting Reports
      • ACR Convergence Home
    • American College of Rheumatology
    • ACR ExamRheum
    • Research Reviews
    • ACR Journals
      • Arthritis & Rheumatology
      • Arthritis Care & Research
      • ACR Open Rheumatology
    • Rheumatology Image Library
    • Treatment Guidelines
    • Rheumatology Research Foundation
    • Events
  • About Us
    • Mission/Vision
    • Meet the Authors
    • Meet the Editors
    • Contribute to The Rheumatologist
    • Subscription
    • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Search
You are here: Home / Articles / Tofacitinib Effective for Treating Moderate-to-Severe Chronic Plaque Psoriasis

Tofacitinib Effective for Treating Moderate-to-Severe Chronic Plaque Psoriasis

June 12, 2015 • By Reuters Staff

  • Tweet
  • Email
Print-Friendly Version / Save PDF

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Tofacitinib is better than placebo (and noninferior to etanercept) for treating patients with moderate-to-severe chronic plaque psoriasis, according to Pfizer’s OPT Compare trial.

You Might Also Like
  • Tofacitinib Shows Ongoing Action Against Plaque Psoriasis
  • Certolizumab Pegol Promising for Plaque Psoriasis in Phase 3 Trial
  • One-Year Data Shows Apremilast Effective in Severe Scalp, Nail Psoriasis

In an earlier 12-week, phase 2b, dose-ranging trial, the oral JAK inhibitor tofacitinib proved to be more effective than placebo for treating patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis.

ad goes here:advert-1
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

Based on those encouraging results, Dr. Hervé Bachelez from APHP Hopital Saint-Louis in Paris and colleagues from 122 investigational dermatology centers worldwide compared the efficacy and safety of tofacitinib (5 mg or 10 mg twice daily) with that of etanercept (50 mg subcutaneously twice weekly) or placebo in 1,106 patients with moderate-to-severe chronic plaque psoriasis.

The proportion of patients achieving at least a 75% reduction in Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) score from baseline to week 12 (PASI75) did not differ between tofacitinib 10 mg (63.6%) and etanercept (58.8%), which satisfied the noninferiority criteria.

ad goes here:advert-2
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

Tofacitinib 5 mg proved better than placebo (39.5% vs. 5.6%, respectively), but not noninferior to etanercept.

Physician’s Global Assessment responses (which included scores of 0=clear and 1=almost clear) showed a similar pattern: 47.1% of the tofacitinib 5 mg group, 68.2% of the tofacitinib 10 mg group, 66.3% of the etanercept group, and 15.0% of the placebo group.

Similar percentages of the active treatment groups achieved clinically meaningful improvements in Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) scores at week 12, the researchers report in The Lancet, online June 5.

ad goes here:advert-3
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

No more than 4% of patients in any of the groups discontinued treatment because of adverse events.

“This study is the first phase 3 trial of an oral agent (tofacitinib 10 mg twice daily) to show similar efficacy and safety to a biological agent (etanercept) for the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis,” the researchers conclude.

“Long-term studies of tofacitinib in plaque psoriasis are ongoing to confirm the efficacy and safety profile beyond the 12-week period assessed in this trial,” they add. “If further results confirm these findings, in the future tofacitinib could provide a convenient and well-tolerated therapeutic option for patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis.”

In a related editorial, though, Dr. Mark Lebwohl from Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, questions whether we need more psoriasis therapies, especially in view of the fact that “more than 80% of patients with moderate-to-severe disease are treated only with topical therapy or not at all.”

“The only conclusion one can make from a 12-week study in which fewer than 700 patients were treated with tofacitinib is that the early signals from this trial show a safety profile that is similar to that of etanercept, which is one of the most widely used systemic therapies for psoriasis,” Dr. Lebwohl writes.

Pages: 1 2 | Single Page

Filed Under: Biologics & Biosimilars, Drug Updates Tagged With: etanercept, Pfizer Inc., plaque psoriasis, Tofacitinib

You Might Also Like:
  • Tofacitinib Shows Ongoing Action Against Plaque Psoriasis
  • Certolizumab Pegol Promising for Plaque Psoriasis in Phase 3 Trial
  • One-Year Data Shows Apremilast Effective in Severe Scalp, Nail Psoriasis
  • FDA Approves Valeant’s Drug to Treat Plaque Psoriasis

American College of Rheumatology

Visit the official website for the American College of Rheumatology.

Visit the ACR »

Simple Tasks

Learn more about the ACR’s public awareness campaign and how you can get involved. Help increase visibility of rheumatic diseases and decrease the number of people left untreated.

Visit the Simple Tasks site »

ACR Convergence

Don’t miss rheumatology’s premier scientific meeting for anyone involved in research or the delivery of rheumatologic care or services.

Visit the ACR Convergence site »

The Rheumatologist newsmagazine reports on issues and trends in the management and treatment of rheumatic diseases. The Rheumatologist reaches 11,500 rheumatologists, internists, orthopedic surgeons, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, and other healthcare professionals who practice, research, or teach in the field of rheumatology.

About Us / Contact Us / Advertise / Privacy Policy / Terms of Use

  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed

Copyright © 2006–2021 American College of Rheumatology. All rights reserved.

ISSN 1931-3268 (print)
ISSN 1931-3209 (online)

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
This site uses cookies: Find out more.