An international team of researchers has successfully developed a new treatment to treat vitiligo, this autoimmune disease which manifests itself by depigmentation of the skin.
- The Nice University Hospital, which therefore participated in the development of the new treatment, is one of the precursors of research on vitiligo in France, with Créteil and Bordeaux, according to Professor Thierry Passeron.
- The autoimmune disease develops in flare-ups, under the influence of various factors such as stress, anxiety, psychological shock or friction. It affects all ethnic groups equally, but is more evident in those with darker skin.
A cream that repigments the skin, to be applied twice a day: here is the new treatment to cure vitiligo – the first of its kind – which could be “authorized in France in 2023 and reimbursed by health insurance in the months that follow”. This is affirmed by Thierry Passeron, head of the dermatology department at the Nice University Hospital and member of an international group of experts who developed the product, which has already been validated by the Food and Drug Administration, the American medicine agency. It’s the newspaper nice morning who was the first to echo the discovery.
One million people with vitiligo in France
Vitiligo is an autoimmune disease that occurs when pigment-bearing cells die or are unable to function normally. Concretely, it is manifested by the appearance of white areas on the skin, in particular the face, hands and feet or even the genitals. Long misunderstood, vitiligo nevertheless affects between 1 and 2% of the world’s population, including more than a million people in France, starting with the former Prime Minister Edward Philip.
The cream in question, called Opzelura (or ruxolitinib) was tested on 600 adults and children over 12 with the disease. “Two major international studies have confirmed its effectiveness, particularly on the face. With application twice a day, for six to twenty-four months, repigmentation is complete”assures Thierry Passeron in the 20 Minute newspaper. It states that the product is “very well tolerated” in patients and “does not require a blood test”. Note that if vitiligo persists, it is “possible to redo the treatment”.
Combine the cream with other repigmentation treatments?
Only problem, “some areas are difficult to repigment, such as the feet or the hands”, nuances the professor. Further studies should therefore be carried out “from next year” to further improve the results, for example by combining the cream with UV rays or a transplant of melanocytes (skin cells) on the affected areas. A treatment for children from the age of 6 could also see the light of day soon.
A pioneer on the subject, the Nice University Hospital created in 2021 a website dedicated to the disease to better inform patients. And in particular to break certain received ideas: no, vitiligo is not contagious, it is not hereditary (in 90% of cases) like other autoimmune diseases, and patients who suffer from it “are not more at risk of getting skin cancer”concludes Thierry Passeron.
#Research we #dermatology
????Two Phase 3, Randomized, Controlled Trials of #Ruxolitinib Cream for #Vitiligo“
by Pr Thierry Passeron from #CHUdeNice.https://t.co/E16M5KMGng https://t.co/E72ALAzbS8– Nice University Hospital (@CHUdeNice) October 26, 2022