BMS drug ‘may delay development of RA’

Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) has announced the results of an exploratory phase II clinical trial showing that Orencia (abatacept) may delay the development of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in adults with undifferentiated inflammatory arthritis.

The company announced the results at the annual congress of the European League Against Rheumatism last week, while the company noted that Orencia is not yet indicated for patients with undifferentiated inflammatory arthritis, with further studies required to validate these findings.

In the trial, Orencia was administered for six months as a monotherapy before withdrawal, with researchers assessing whether this treatment was more effective than placebo in delaying the development of RA in patients positive for anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide (anti-CCP2) antibodies.

Paul Emery, of the University of Leeds, said: “Undifferentiated inflammatory arthritis is a common disease that, in some cases, may evolve into other rheumatic conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis.”

He added that the results of this proof-of-concept study support further trials of the potential of Orencia as a treatment to alter the course of disease in patients towards rheumatoid arthritis.

Also at the meeting last week, BMS announced the results of an analyses showing that Orencia can provide an increasing degree of inhibition of structural damage over three years of treatment in RA patients who have had an inadequate response to treatment with methotrexate.