Tremfya superior to Cosentyx in head-to-head Phase III trial

Janssen Biotech Inc. said Tremfya guselkumab met the primary endpoint of improving PASI 90 response rate vs. Cosentyx secukinumab from Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS; SIX:NOVN) in the Phase III ECLIPSE trial to treat moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. ECLIPSE is the first head-to-head Phase III trial to compare efficacy between the drugs. Tremfya is a human HuCAL mAb targeting the IL-23 subunit α (IL23P19; IL-23A) and Cosentyx is a human IgG1 mAb targeting IL-17A.

The double-blind, international trial enrolled 1,048 patients to receive 100 mg subcutaneous Tremfya at weeks 0, 4 and 12 followed by every eight-week dosing, or 300 mg subcutaneous Cosentyx at weeks 0, 1, 2, 3 and 4 followed by every four-week dosing. On the primary endpoint, a significantly greater proportion of patients who received Tremfya achieved a Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) 90 response at week 48 vs. Cosentyx (84.5% vs. 70%, p<0.001). Data were presented at the Inflammatory Skin Disease Summit in Vienna...