Amgen touts Tezspire data ahead of ATS 2024

Ahead of a planned presentation at the American Thoracic Society meeting next month, US biotech major Amgen (Nasdaq: AMGN) has released an update regarding the results of the Phase IIa COURSE trial for Tezspire (tezepelumab-ekko) in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD),

Being jointly developed by AstraZeneca (LSE: AZ) and Amgen, Tezspire was approved in the USA last year for self-administration using a single-use, pre-filled pen for severe asthma patients aged 12 years and above. It was initially Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved in December 2021 and is claimed to be the only biologic approved to treat severe asthma with no phenotype or biomarker limitation.

Amgen said it is encouraged by the results of the COURSE Phase IIa proof-of-concept trial, which investigated tezepelumab in moderate to very severe COPD patients, across a broad range of eosinophil levels, irrespective of inflammatory drivers, emphysema, chronic bronchitis and smoking status. This study did not exclude any patients based on their baseline eosinophil count (BEC) and intentionally enrolled patients with a broad range of BECs.