Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (REGN) and partner Sanofi (SNY) announced encouraging data from the interim analysis of a dose-ranging phase IIb study on dupilumab. The study evaluated the use of dupilumab in adults suffering from uncontrolled moderate-to-severe asthma.
The study evaluated four doses of dupilumab (300 mg every other week, 200 mg every other week, 300 mg monthly, 200 mg monthly). The three highest doses of dupilumab in combination with the current standard-of-treatment met the primary endpoint of achieving statistically significant improvement from baseline in forced expiratory volume over one second at week 12 in patients with high blood eosinophils, as compared to placebo in combination with standard-of-treatment. The final analyses on exacerbations and safety are scheduled to occur at 24 weeks.
Based on encouraging data from the interim analysis of phase IIb results, the company plans to advance dupilumab into phase III studies in patients with moderate-to-severe uncontrolled asthma.
As per company sources, asthma is estimated to affect approximately 25 million and in the range 235–300 million people in the U.S. and worldwide, respectively. Approximately 10% to 20% of these patients are less than optimally treat using existing therapies.
Apart from being evaluated for the treatment of moderate-to-severe asthma, dupilumab is being evaluated for the potential treatment of atopic dermatitis and chronic sinusitis with nasal polyposis.
Regeneron currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) while Sanofi is a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) stock. Some better-ranked stocks in the health care sector are Allergan (AGN) and AbbVie (ABBV). Both carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
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