Novartis plans head-to-head studies of Cosentyx versus Humira

Novartis is to present 33 scientific abstracts at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR 2016).

This includes new long-term analyses suggesting Cosentyx (secukinumab) may lead to higher responses than Humira (adalimumab) in improving the signs and symptoms of people living with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA) at 52 weeks. These analyses are from two studies using the Matching-Adjusted Indirect Comparisons (MAIC) method. MAIC is a valid and accepted method for comparative effectiveness research. 
 
To directly compare Cosentyx versus Humira, Novartis plans to initiate new head-to-head studies in patients with AS and PsA. These will be the first ever adequately powered long-term head-to-head studies with biologic medicines to differentiate the effectiveness of treatment in these conditions. 

“There is an urgent need for new ankylosing spondylitis and psoriatic arthritis treatments because a significant number of patients do not respond well to anti-TNF therapy, the current standard of care,” said Vasant Narasimhan, Global Head, Drug Development and Chief Medical Officer, Novartis. “There is a growing body of evidence that supports the potential of Cosentyx to become a gold standard of care for patients living with these debilitating conditions.”

No radiographic progression

Also presented at EULAR 2016 were two-year data showing that up to 80% of AS patients on Cosentyx had no radiographic progression in the spine on x-ray assessment. A similar proportion of patients with PsA (84%), who were on Cosentyx for two years, also had no evidence of progression.

Cosentyx is a fully human monoclonal antibody that selectively neutralises circulating IL-17A. Research suggests that IL-17A may play an important role in driving the body’s immune response in psoriasis, AS and PsA.

Cosentyx is approved in more than 50 countries for the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis which includes the European Union countries, Japan, Switzerland, Australia, the US and Canada. In Europe, the therapy is approved for the first-line systemic treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis in adult patients. In the US, Cosentyx is approved as a treatment for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis in adult patients who are candidates for systemic therapy or phototherapy (light therapy).