Novartis’s drug potential disease course changer in psoriasis treatment?

Novartis has reported new data suggesting, for the first time, that Cosentyx (secukinumab) may modify the course of moderate-to-severe psoriasis leading to long-term, treatment-free skin clearance.

Cosentyx is the first and only IL-17A inhibitor to have reported this potential of disease modification, Novartis said.

Previous data has shown that Cosentyx, a fully human, specific inhibitor of the IL-17A cytokine, delivers long-lasting clear or almost clear skin (PASI 90 to PASI 100) in up to 80% of patients out to four years.

“These results suggest that Cosentyx may go beyond simply treating symptoms and could actually modify the course of psoriasis, and highlights the need for further investigation into early intervention,” said Vas Narasimhan, Global Head, Drug Development and Chief Medical Officer, Novartis. “Being able to change the course of disease is the ultimate goal of treatment, which is why we are investing in the STEPIn trial to further understand the disease modifying ability of Cosentyx in psoriasis.”