(Reuters Health)—Intravenous belimumab combined with standard lupus therapy can help preserve kidney function in patients with active lupus nephritis and cut the odds of death or a renal-related event by half, a phase 3 multinational study has concluded.1 After two years of therapy, 43% of 224 volunteers getting the drug monthly showed a renal response…
Lupus Treatments: Into the Future
As the 21st century unfolds, rheumatologists will most likely transition from prescribing lupus patients broad immunosuppressants to more targeted treatment approaches. But to make this happen and advance research, the challenges experienced in lupus clinical trial design must be addressed…
Study Probes Whether Belimumab Can Lower Vasculitis Relapse Rate
In an international clinical trial, adding the drug belimumab to standard maintenance therapy for patients in remission with vasculitis did not lower the relapse rate. The double-blind, placebo-controlled study evaluated the safety and efficacy of belimumab as adjunctive therapy to maintain remission in anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA) associated vasculitis (AAV). Results of the multi-center, industry-sponsored…
In Wake of Lupus Trial Failure, New Research Attacks From Many Angles
CHICAGO—When Richard Furie, MD, was first asked to speak about lupus at the 2019 ACR State-of-the-Art Clinical Symposium, held April 5–7, organizers suggested he discuss low disease activity and classification criteria. But Dr. Furie, a professor of medicine at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Hempstead, N.Y., and a veteran investigator…
Ixekizumab Promising for Non-Radiographic Axial SpA; Plus FDA Approves Belimumab for Pediatric Lupus
Results from a Phase 3 study showed ixekizumab significantly improved the signs and symptoms of non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis in patients…
Treating Lupus: Strategies, Treat to Target & Biologics
CHICAGO—David A. Isenberg, MD, academic director of rheumatology, University College London, presented the ACR Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) State-of-the-Art Symposium at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting. Dr. Isenberg began by noting lupus is now widely covered in the news, but singer Selena Gomez has probably done the most to increase awareness of the disease; her…
Diagnosing & Managing Pulmonary & Kidney Manifestations in Lupus
CHICAGO—In systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), most types of severe pulmonary manifestations are relatively rare, but it’s crucial they be caught because of the potentially dire consequences, said Richard Silver, MD, professor in the Rheumatology Division at the Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting. Pulmonary Manifestations Parenchymal disease—seen in the…
Results from Belimumab Safety Study
In a long-term extension study, belimumab proved safe, demonstrating low organ damage accrual in SLE patients treated for up to nine years…
Researchers Test Belimumab in Scleroderma
A yearlong pilot study that evaluated the safety and efficacy of belimumab in a small group of patients with early diffuse systemic sclerosis found no significant difference in the number of adverse events between those treated with the drug and those who received a placebo. Currently, no drugs are approved specifically for the treatment of…
Subcutaneous Belimumab Improves Systemic Lupus Srythematosus Outcomes
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Subcutaneous belimumab improves outcomes in anti-dsDNA-positive hypocomplementemic patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), according to results from a Phase 3 randomized, controlled trial. Intravenous belimumab is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency for the treatment of patients with active, autoantibody-positive SLE who are receiving standard…