Dive Brief:
- Salirumab is an antibody that reduces inflammation through IL-6 receptor inhibition. It is intended to treat inflammation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
- Sarilumab significantly outperformed placebo in a 24-week, phase III study in 546 patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
- Regeneron and Sanofi are partners on bringing this drug to market. They are submitting salirumab to the FDA for review in the fourth quarter of this year.
Dive Insight:
According to the CDC, roughly 1.5 million adults in the U.S. have rheumatoid arthrisis (RA) and the demand for additional treatment options is very strong. Salirumab performed well in phase III. All told, 60% of patients who recevied 200 mg of injectable salirumab every other week had improvements of at least 20%, compared with 34% of placebo-treated patients.
Regeneron and Sanofi have created a strong, productive partnership in which three of the injectables in their pipeline have the potential to be blockbusters, including salirumab for RA, the PCSK9 inhibitor alirocumab for hypercholesterolemia, and dupilumab for treatment of various allergic diseases, such as asthma and atopic dermatitis.