Humira superior to MTX in psoriasis study

USA-based health care firm Abbott Laboratories says that the results of a trial of its biologic Humira (adalimumab) demonstrate that it is superior to methotrexate in the treatment of patients with psoriasis. The findings, which are from the CHAMPION program, were presented earlier this month at the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology Congress in Greece.

The study, which was a monotherapy comparison of Humira with methotrexate and placebo, enrolled 271 patients in a three arm, 16-week program. Participants were randomized into the three groups, with the treatment cohort receiving a 40mg subcutaneous injection of the agent every other week, having initially been given a 80mg single dose.

The data showed that around twice as many patients with moderate-to-severe psoriasis achieved a 75% improvement in Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI-75) score when treated with Humira compared with those who received the standard therapy methotrexate (80% versus 35.5%, and 18.9% for placebo). The firm added that the treatment benefit conferred by the agent was rapid, with an average 57% symptom improvement in the drug-treated group at week four.