Dupixent® (dupilumab) recommended for expanded EU approval by the CHMP to treat children as young as six months old with severe atopic dermatitis
- If approved, Dupixent would be the first and only targeted medicine in the EU for these young children
- Recommendation based on a Phase 3 trial in children 6 months to 5 years old showing Dupixent improved skin clearance, reduced overall disease severity and improved health-related quality of life
- In Europe, about 80,000 children aged 6 months to 5 years old with uncontrolled severe atopic dermatitis are candidates for systemic therapy
Paris and Tarrytown, N.Y. January 27, 2023. The European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) adopted a positive opinion for Dupixent® (dupilumab), recommending expanded approval in the European Union (EU) to treat severe atopic dermatitis in children 6 months to 5 years old who are candidates for systemic therapy. The European Commission is expected to announce a final decision on the Dupixent application in the coming months. In June 2022, Dupixent was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for children in this age group.
Atopic dermatitis is a chronic type 2 inflammatory skin disease. Between 85% and 90% of patients first develop symptoms before 5 years of age, which can often continue through adulthood. Symptoms include intense, persistent itch and skin lesions that cover much of the body, resulting in skin dryness, cracking, pain, redness or darkening, crusting and oozing, which can increase the risk of skin infection. Severe atopic dermatitis may also significantly impact the quality of life of young children and their caregivers. Current treatment options in this age group are primarily topical corticosteroids (TCS), which can be associated with safety risks and may impair growth when used long-term.
The positive CHMP opinion is supported by data from a Phase 3 trial in children 6 months to 5 years of age recently published in The Lancet, which met all primary and secondary endpoints. At 16 weeks, Dupixent plus low-potency TCS improved skin clearance and reduced overall disease severity compared to TCS alone (the placebo arm). Dupixent patients also experienced reduced itch and skin pain as well as improved sleep quality and health-related quality of life compared to placebo. Long-term data further showed a sustained improvement in these disease measures up to one year. Safety results were generally consistent with the known safety profile of Dupixent in atopic dermatitis. Adverse events more commonly observed with Dupixent in this atopic dermatitis population compared to placebo included conjunctivitis and eosinophilia.
The use of Dupixent in infants and young children less than 6 years of age with severe atopic dermatitis is investigational in the EU and is not yet approved.
About Dupixent
Dupixent is a fully human monoclonal antibody that inhibits the signaling of the interleukin-4 (IL-4) and interleukin-13 (IL-13) pathways and is not an immunosuppressant. The Dupixent development program has shown significant clinical benefit and a decrease in type 2 inflammation in Phase 3 trials, establishing that IL-4 and IL-13 are key and central drivers of the type 2 inflammation that plays a major role in multiple related and often co-morbid diseases. These diseases include approved indications for Dupixent, such as atopic dermatitis, asthma, chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis (CRSwNP) and prurigo nodularis, as well as investigational diseases such as eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) in the EU.
Dupixent has received regulatory approvals in one or more countries around the world for use in certain patients with atopic dermatitis, prurigo nodularis, asthma, CRSwNP or EoE in different age populations. Dupixent is currently approved for one or more of these indications in more than 60 countries, including in Europe, the U.S. and Japan. More than 500,000 patients have been treated with Dupixent globally.
Dupilumab Development Program
Dupilumab is being jointly developed by Sanofi and Regeneron under a global collaboration agreement. To date, dupilumab has been studied across more than 60 clinical trials involving more than 10,000 patients with various chronic diseases driven in part by type 2 inflammation.
In addition to the currently approved indications, Sanofi and Regeneron are studying dupilumab in a broad range of diseases driven by type 2 inflammation or other allergic processes in Phase 3 trials, including pediatric EoE, hand and foot atopic dermatitis, chronic inducible urticaria-cold, chronic spontaneous urticaria, chronic pruritus of unknown origin, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease with evidence of type 2 inflammation, chronic rhinosinusitis without nasal polyposis, allergic fungal rhinosinusitis, allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis and bullous pemphigoid. These potential uses of dupilumab are currently under clinical investigation, and the safety and efficacy in these conditions have not been fully evaluated by any regulatory authority.
About Regeneron
Regeneron (NASDAQ: REGN) is a leading biotechnology company that invents, develops and commercializes life-transforming medicines for people with serious diseases. Founded and led for 35 years by physician-scientists, our unique ability to repeatedly and consistently translate science into medicine has led to nine FDA-approved treatments and numerous product candidates in development, almost all of which were homegrown in our laboratories. Our medicines and pipeline are designed to help patients with eye diseases, allergic and inflammatory diseases, cancer, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, pain, hematologic conditions, infectious diseases and rare diseases.
Regeneron is accelerating and improving the traditional drug development process through our proprietary VelociSuite® technologies, such as VelocImmune®, which uses unique genetically humanized mice to produce optimized fully human antibodies and bispecific antibodies, and through ambitious research initiatives such as the Regeneron Genetics Center, which is conducting one of the largest genetics sequencing efforts in the world.
For more information, please visit www.Regeneron.com or follow @Regeneron on Twitter.
About Sanofi
We are an innovative global healthcare company, driven by one purpose: we chase the miracles of science to improve people’s lives. Our team, across some 100 countries, is dedicated to transforming the practice of medicine by working to turn the impossible into the possible. We provide potentially life-changing treatment options and life-saving vaccine protection to millions of people globally, while putting sustainability and social responsibility at the center of our ambitions.
Sanofi is listed on EURONEXT: SAN and NASDAQ: SNY
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