GlaxoSmithKline plc (LSE/NYSE:GSK) has announced that China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) has approved Benlysta (belimumab) for the treatment of adult patients with active lupus nephritis (LN), a type of kidney disease affecting more than half of those with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Benlysta is the only biologic approved to treat SLE and lupus nephritis…
FDA approves AstraZeneca’s Saphnelo as a new lupus treatment
AstraZeneca (LON:AZN) has won FDA approval for Saphnelo (anifrolumab-fnia) to treat moderate to severe systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in adults. The drug is the first treatment for SLE to win FDA approval in more than one decade. Saphnelo targets the type I interferon (IFN) pathway, which plays a role in the pathophysiology of lupus. Researchers have…
Anifrolumab data promising for systemic lupus erythematosus
AstraZeneca (LON:AZN) has announced that a new posthoc analysis of data from the TULIP Phase 3 clinical trials of anifrolumab showed promise in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), the most common type of lupus. Anifrolumab is a monoclonal antibody that blocks the activity of interferons such as interferon-α and interferon-β. If approved, anifrolumab would be…