Patients with lupus who received from Anifrolumab have accumulated much less lesions, which produce a serious structural change in the organs, for four years.
- Approved by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) In 2021, Anifolumab, sold under the name Saphnelo, is a monoclonal antibody that blocks type 1 interferon receptors, a biochemical substance that plays a key role in promoting inflammation.
- In adults with lupus, taking this medication associated with a combination of anti-inflammatory drugs lowered the organic lesions monitoring caused by this autoimmune disease by 0.43.
- In addition, patients were 59.9 % less likely to experience an increase in the severity of their organic lesions.
Reins, heart, liver… lupus is an autoimmune disease, which can cause irreversible damage to the organs of a person. Although patients take a combination of anti-inflammatory drugs, such as steroids, antimalarials, immunosuppressants and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, organic lesions are still present. However, a study, published in the journal Annals of the Rheumatic Diseasessuggests that a new drug against lupus seems to protect patients against a large part of these organic lesions.
354 people with lupus benefited from anifrolumab and traditional care
This is anifolumab, sold under the name Saphnelo, which was approved by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2021 for the treatment of the disseminated lupus erythematosus. This treatment, administered once a month by intravenous infusion, is a monoclonal antibody that blocks type 1 interferon receptors, a biochemical substance that plays a key role in promoting inflammation.
In these new works, scientists from the University of Toronto (Canada) have sought to determine whether the association of anifrolumab and standard treatment was associated with a reduction in the accumulation of organic lesions in patients. For this, the team followed 354 adults suffering from lupus, who were prescribed from Anifrolumab (300 mg), and 561 people, who only benefited from the usual care for lupus, for 208 weeks, or four years . Scientists compared the data between the two groups.
Lupus: 59.9 % risks less than seeing organic lesions get worse thanks to anifrolumab
The results showed that the participants taking anifrolumab obtained a score of approximately 0.43 points on a monitoring of organic lesions caused by the lupus. “An increase in one point in this index has already been associated with an increase of 34 % of the risk of premature death in patients with lupus”, explained the authors. Another observation: volunteers treated by Anifrolumab and the combination of anti-inflammatory drugs had 59.9 % risks in less to see their organic lesions worsen.
