Could an injection called ixekizumab cure Kim Kardashian’s psoriasis

June 11, 2016

Ixekizumab has been found to cure painful psoriasis in 80% of patients
Three large, long-term clinical trials found the injection to be effective
Psoriasis affects 3% of world’s population and causes itchy, dry red skin

Lizzie Parry For Dailymail.com

Published:
15:47 EST, 10 June 2016

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Updated:
22:24 EST, 10 June 2016

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A new drug could offer hope to people across the world living with the painful skin condition, psoriasis.

A new study has shown ixekizumab completely or almost completely cleared the disease in 80 per cent of patients with moderate to severe psoriasis.

Kim Kardashian West has spoken out in the past about her struggles with the condition, which causes red, itchy and painful patches, often on the star’s legs.

The new findings from three large, long-term clinical trials, are published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Dr Kenneth Gordon, professor of dermatology at Northwestern University and first author of the paper, said: ‘This group of studies not only shows very high and consistent levels of safety and efficacy, but also that the great majority of the responses persist persist at least 60 weeks.’

New drug ixekizumab could offer hope to those people who suffer psoriasis. The drug has been found to completely clear or almost completely clear the condition in 80 per cent of patients

Kim Kardashian West has spoken out in the past about her struggles with the condition, which causes painful, red and itchy patches, often on her legs

Psoriasis, which affects around three per cent of the world’s population, is an immune-mediated inflammatory disease that causes itchy, dry and red skin.

It is also linked to an increased risk for depression, heart disease and diabetes, among other conditions.

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Ixekizumab works by neutralizing a pathway in the immune system known to promote psoriasis.

To test the drug’s efficacy over time – and to help clinicians determine whether its benefits outweigh any risks – the three studies enrolled a total of 3,736 adult patients at more than 100 study sites across 21 countries.

Kim Kardashian West has spoken out in the past about her battle with the skin condition, which often flares up on the star’s legs

All participants had moderate to severe psoriasis, which is defined as covering 10 per cent or more of the body.

Patients were randomly assigned to receive injections of ixekizumab at various doses or a placebo over a period of more than a year.

The researchers assessed whether the drug reduced the severity of psoriasis symptoms compared to the placebo.

And they evaluated the safety by monitoring any side effects.

By the 12th week, 76.4 to 81.8 per cent of patients had their condition classified as ‘clear’ or ‘minimal’ compared to 3.2 per cent of patients on the placebo.

By the 60th week, 68.7 to 78.3 per cent of patients showed their improved condition had been maintained.

Dr Gordon said: ‘Based on these findings, we expect that 80 per cent of patients will have an extremely high response rate to ixekizumab, and about 40 per cent will be completely cleared of psoriasis.

‘Ten years ago, we thought complete clearance of this disease was impossible.

‘It wasn’t something we would even try to do.

‘Now with this drug, we’re obtaining response levels higher than ever seen before.’

Side effects of the drug included slightly higher rates of neutropenia – low white blood cell count – yeast infection and inflammatory bowel disease compared to the placebo.

The safety of therapy longer than 60 weeks will need to be monitored in the future, the researchers said.

The drug has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration since the trials were completed.

Ixekizumab works by neutralizing a pathway in the immune system known to promote psoriasis. Researchers found the drug is effective up to 60 weeks after treatment