Dive Brief:
- Astrazeneca evaluated benralizumab in 101 adults with moderate-to-severe COPD who had experienced at least one exacerbation that required intervention.
- Patients were also selected on the basis of eosinophils, a type of white blood cells present in sputum. Eosinophil airway inflammation affects 20% to 30% of patients with COPD.
- Although there was a higher incidence of serious treatment-emergent adverse events in the benralizumab-treated group compared with the placebo group, benralizumab demonstrated significant improvement in lung function in the overall treatment population.
Dive Insight:
Outcomes of the phase IIa trial of benralizumab were inconsistent. The tolerability data was not good; However, the ability to treat a targeted population (benralizumab-treated patients with baseline blood eosinophil concentrations of 200 to 300 cells per microliter or more) was seen as a positive outcome. In addition, the data showed that benralizumab resulted in non-significant but numerical improvements in acute exacerbations; forced expiratory volume in one second; and overall health. Astrazeneca plans to continue clinical trials.