Remicade approved as UC treatment

USA-based pharmaceutical company Schering-Plough says that its biologic Remicade (infliximab) has received a license in the UK for the treatment of severely active ulcerative colitis. Remicade is a chimeric anti-tumor necrosis factor monoclonal antibody, which has been shown to encourage mucosal healing, and is currently licensed for the treatment of Crohn's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis and psoriasis.

The new approval is based on data from two recent studies, ACT 1& 2, in which UC patients who were unresponsive to conventional treatments received Remicade or placebo at a dosage of 5mg/kg per day. The results revealed that those receiving the compound were significantly more likely to produce a clinical response and be in remission at weeks eight and 30 in both trials and week 54 in ACT 1.

The company says that these results are important in light of the recent suggestion that mucosal healing is the strongest predictor of a reduction in the risk of cancer amongst UC patients.