Serono’s Raptiva ‘demonstrates sustained efficacy and safety’

Serono, the Swiss pharmaceutical company recently purchased by Merck KGaA, has announced new results from a 24-week study into patients with moderate-to-severe psoriasis, as well as refractory patients.

The company claims that the data “confirms” the efficacy and safety of the drug observed in the initial 12 weeks, while extended use of Raptiva can garner further improvements in symptoms for patients.

Following the first 12 weeks of the trial, 31.4 per cent of Raptiva users in the non-refractory patient group achieved a 75 per cent improvement in symptoms measured by the psoriasis area and severity index, while after 24 weeks of use, nearly half of patients achieved this figure.

Additionally, no new problems concerning the safety of the drug were identified during the trial.

Professor Wolfram Sterry, director of the department of dermatology, venerology and allergology at the University Hospital Charite Berline, remarked: “Extended treatment with Raptiva resulted in a sustained clinical improvement for psoriasis patients, including refractory patients who had a significant high unmet medical need.”

“These patients did not respond to or could not take traditional therapies and had in many cases additional co-morbidities,” he added.

Raptiva was recommended for use in psoriasis patients in July by NICE, meaning that drug is now available for prescription on the NHS. Andrea Sutcliffe, NICE’s planning and resources director, said that patients in England and Wales would be able to receive “the best possible treatment” following the approval, which included Wyeth’s Enbrel and Janssen-Cilag’s Remicade for psoriatic arthritis.