Exclusive: ACR Convergence 2024| Focus Rheums

An official publication of the ACR and the ARP serving rheumatologists and rheumatology professionals

FDA Clears Pfizer’s Xeljanz for Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Reuters Staff  |  

(Reuters)—The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Wednesday that it had approved Pfizer Inc’s drug, Xeljanz, to treat adults with moderate-to-severe active ulcerative colitis. The effectiveness of Xeljanz (tofacitinib) in treating ulcerative colitis was shown in three controlled clinical trials, including two trials that showed the drug caused disease remission in about 17-18 percent…

Trump Says Drug Companies to Announce “Massive” Price Cuts Soon

Reuters Staff  |  

WASHINGTON (Reuters)—President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he expects major drug companies to slash prices on their products in two weeks, but did not provide details on which companies would do so or how such reductions would be made. Health care lobbyists in Washington said they were caught by surprise and had no idea what…

Gap in Regulating Biotech Drug Copies Prompts WHO to Step In

Ben Hirschler  |  

LONDON (Reuters)—Cut-price copies of expensive biotech drugs promise to slash the cost of treating serious diseases, including cancer, in rich and poor countries alike -but uneven regulation has created a lopsided market. Now the World Health Organization (WHO) is stepping in to assess the quality of such so-called biosimilars, offering a global stamp of approval…

Recro Pharma’s Non-Opioid Pain Shot Fails to Get Approval from FDA

Reuters Staff  |  

(Reuters)—Recro Pharma’s IV meloxicam, a non-opioid injection, did not get approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration because the agency said the drug’s pain-relieving effect did not meet its expectations. The company said it plans to meet with the FDA to find solutions. Unlike the drug’s oral version, which has been on the market…

Novartis Receives EU Approval for Infliximab Biosimilar Zessly

Reuters Staff  |  

ZURICH (Reuters)—Novartis said its Sandoz division received approval from the European Commission for its biosimilar Zessly (infliximab) in gastroenterological, rheumatological and dermatological diseases. Zessly is approved for use in all indications of the reference medicine including rheumatoid arthritis, adult and pediatric Crohn’s disease, adult and pediatric ulcerative colitis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis and plaque psoriasis,…

One Step Closer to Personalized Medicine for RA Patients

  |  

New research is translating the molecular signals in RA patients to better understand the earliest signs of disease. The work on using these signs to test the effects of RA treatment may help rheumatologists determine the most effective treatment for individuals…

Prenatal TNF Inhibitor Exposure Not Linked to Serious Infections

Anne Harding  |  

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Children of women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who are exposed to tumor necrosis factor-alpha inhibitors (TNFis) in the womb are not at markedly increased risk of serious infections, new findings suggest. “It’s reassuring for mothers who need to take these medications during pregnancy,” Evelyne Vinet, MD, of McGill University Health Center in…

Guselkumab May Best Adalimumab for Psoriasis on the Scalp, Palms & Soles

Marilynn Larkin  |  

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—The interleukin 23 inhibitor guselkumab is associated with more improvement in psoriasis on the scalp, palms and/or soles compared with adalimumab, a new analysis suggests. Andrew Blauvelt, MD, MBA, of Oregon Medical Research Center in Portland conducted a secondary analysis of data from the international VOYAGE 1 and VOYAGE 2 studies, double-blind,…