Newly approved tofacitinib slows rheumatoid arthritis joint damage

A Phase III clinical trial demonstrates that tofacitinib improves disease activity and inhibits progression of joint damage in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients who did not respond to methotrexate (MTX). Results of the 12-month interim analysis of the efficacy of tofacitinib appear in Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal published by Wiley on behalf of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR).

The US Food and Drug Administration late last year approved pharma behemoth Pfizer’s (NYSE: PFE) Xeljanz (tofacitinib) to treat adults with moderately to severely active rheumatoid arthritis who have had an inadequate response to, or who are intolerant of, methotrexate (The Pharma Letter November 7, 2012).

"Tofacitinib inhibits Janus kinase (JAK) enzymes that are found in white blood cells, and which help to regulate the immune system," explains lead investigator Desiree van der Heijde from Leiden University Medical Center in The Netherlands, adding: "We are examining the oral JAK inhibitor, tofacitinib, as a disease-modifying anti-inflammatory drug (DMARD) and for its ability to modulate the immune system in those with RA."