Novartis' Cosentyx demonstrates superiority to Stelara in head-to-head psoriasis study

15 December 2014

Swiss drug major Novartis (NOVN: VX) announced that the Phase IIIb CLEAR study for Cosentyx (secukinumab) met its primary endpoint.

The drug demonstrated superiority to Stelara (ustekinumab), from US health care giant Johnson & Johnson’s (NYSE: JNJ) subsidiary Janssen Biotech, and achieved PASI 90 which represents clear or almost-clear skin at 16 weeks after treatment in psoriasis patients. It also met its secondary endpoint of PASI 75 at week four.

It is the second head-to-head study for the drug against an established psoriasis biologic treatment, following the FIXTURE study showing that Cosentyx was superior to Enbrel (etanercept), a current standard-of-care from US pharma giant Pfizer (NYSE: PFE). Research showed that 50% of psoriasis patients were not content with current therapies, including biologic treatments.

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