Amgen’s Otezla shows promise in psoriatic arthritis

The inflammatory form of arthritis is estimated to affect nearly 38 million people worldwide

Amgen has announced positive new research evaluating the use of Otezla (apremilast) in psoriatic arthritis.

The new data for the drug, being presented at the 2023 European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR), includes results from the phase 4 MOSAIC study, which evaluated its effect on joint inflammation and structural progression of psoriatic arthritis using MRI.

Results showed that patients treated with Otezla had improvements in both clinical and MRI measures of inflammation up to week 48, according to the company.

Ponda Motsepe-Ditshego, vice president, global medical at Amgen, said: “Using MRI, the MOSAIC study visually captured an improvement in inflammation and no significant change in structural progression, with the effects being greater in patients with moderate as opposed to high disease activity.”

Results from an exploratory analysis of cardiometabolic risk factors, which are commonly elevated in patients with psoriatic disease, are also included within the new research.

The post-hoc exploratory analysis of data from five pooled phase 3 trials showed Otezla treatment was associated with improvement in cardiometabolic parameters across psoriatic disease activity groups.

Psoriatic arthritis is a chronic, inflammatory form of arthritis estimated to affect nearly 38 million people worldwide. The condition can cause swelling, stiffness and pain in and around the joints that worsens over time and can decrease physical function.

Otezla regulates inflammation by inhibiting an enzyme known as phosphodiesterase 4. This enzyme controls much of the inflammatory action within cells, which can affect the level of inflammation associated with psoriatic disease.

Amgen bought Otezla from Celgene Corporation in 2019 for $13.4bn to strengthen its inflammation portfolio. The drug is already indicated to treat certain patients with plaque psoriasis, active psoriatic arthritis, and those with oral ulcers associated with Behçet’s Disease.