Strong Ph III data for Lilly's DR drug

US drug major Eli Lilly has reported encouraging results from an analysis of pooled data from two, three-year Phase III trials that showed ruboxistaurin mesylate reduced the risk of sustained moderate vision loss 41% compared to placebo in patients with moderate-to-severe, non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy.

According to the data, presented at the 66th annual scientific sessions of the American Diabetes Association held in Washington DC, vision loss occurred in only 6.1% of patients treated with ruboxistaurin compared to 10.2% of those on placebo. Ruboxistaurin, which has the proposed brand name Arxxant, produced vision loss in only 6.1% of patients compared to 10.2% of patients treated with placebo, equaling a 41% relative risk reduction (p=0.011) over three years, the firm stated.

The study's lead investogator, Lloyd Aiello, said these data are "exciting because they show that ruboxistaurin has the potential to be the first oral therapy to specifically reduce the risk of vision loss caused by diabetic retinopathy." He went on to add that "this could be an important clinical development for the millions of people around the world who are at risk for vision loss caused by this serious disease."