Positive Phase III for Novartis’ ianalumab in Sjögren’s disease

Swiss pharma giant Novartis (NOVN: VX) today presented new ianalumab data in Sjögren’s disease, the second most prevalent rheumatic autoimmune disease, at a late-breaker presentation during the American College of Rheumatology Convergence congress.

Ianalumab 300mg monthly delivered a clinically meaningful benefit in the global NEPTUNUS-1 and NEPTUNUS-2 Phase III trials, showing both improvement in disease activity and reductions in patient burden1. Compared to placebo, ianalumab achieved a numerically greater reduction in disease activity by Week 16 with improvements sustained through Week 52 as measured by the EULAR Sjögren’s Syndrome Disease Activity Index (ESSDAI)1.

Novartis acquired ianalumab through its $2.9 billion takeover of MorphoSys last year.