New Plaque Psoriasis Treatment

“We are excited to introduce this important biologic treatment to Canadians living with this common, inhibiting and often-overlooked disease. This launch is an important milestone for Sun Pharma, as we expand our dermatology portfolio into Canada,” said Abhay Gandhi, CEO North America, Sun Pharma. “With five years of effective treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis, ILUMYA demonstrates our commitment to providing innovative medicines to support patient lifestyle and physician choice.”

Plaque psoriasis is a chronic autoimmune disease that appears on the skin as red, raised areas of the skin covered with flaky white scales that can crack and bleed. It affects approximately one million Canadians. Moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis affects about 35% of patients. A key challenge is that many treatments stop working overtime and symptoms return. Durability of treatment in the long-term is an unmet need for many patients.

“Moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis can make it difficult to feel comfortable in your own skin and the search for an effective treatment can be as challenging as the disease itself,” said Dr. Melinda Gooderham, a board-certified Dermatologist and Medical Director at the SKiN Centre for Dermatology in Peterborough, Ontario. “Our patients need options for an effective, durable and continuous treatment in Canada and ILUMYA will help meet that need.”

In a published peer reviewed journal of the pooled analyses of the two trials reSURFACE 1 and reSURFACE 2, the data shows that most patients on ILUMYA maintained response and a reassuring safety profile through 5 years of treatment.

In patients who were treated with ILUMYA 100 mg, nearly nine out of 10 maintained their response through Year 5. ILUMYA 100 mg was well-tolerated during the Phase 3 trials. The three adverse reactions that occurred more frequently than placebo and ≥1% in clinical trials were upper respiratory infections (15.1% vs. 12.3%), injection site reactions (3.9% vs. 2.6%) and headache (3.2% vs. 2.9%).

In Canada, some patients involved in the study have reported still having clear skin eight years later.

“I have patients who have been treated with ILUMYA for the past eight years, and I have seen their skin improve to high levels of clearance, and stay clear for the long term. As a result, their lives have also improved,” added Dr. Gooderham.

“All my life I struggled with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis, and I constantly rotated between creams and ointments that never worked and only added to my stress. Until I learned about ILUMYA, I thought I had run out of treatment options,” said Ainsley Leween, psoriasis patient. “Since I started using ILUMYA eight years ago, my psoriasis has been under control.”

Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH), through the Common Drug Review, has positively recommended to the provinces it deals with that the ILUMYA product be reimbursed for patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis, when prescribed by a dermatologist.