Johnson & Johnson's Blockbuster Drug Tremfya Clears Plaque Psoriasis With Lesions Covering Body's Smaller Areas

On Friday, Johnson & Johnson JNJ announced that treatment with Tremfya (guselkumab) resulted in clear or almost clear skin in the majority of adults with low body surface area (BSA) moderate plaque psoriasis (PsO) with special site involvement who had failed topical treatment.  

Data from the Phase 3b SPECTREM study to measure skin clearance and other treatment outcomes in low BSA moderate PsO with involvement across four special sites (scalp, face, skin folds, and genitals) and previous topical treatment failure were presented at the 2024 Fall Clinical Dermatology Conference.

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A significantly greater proportion of patients who received Tremfya achieved the primary endpoint of an Investigator’s Global Assessment (IGA) score of cleared (0) or minimal disease compared to those who received placebo (74.2% versus 12.4%, respectively.

Significant clearance versus placebo at Week 16: scalp (75.0% versus 14.5%), face (87.8% versus 28.6%), intertriginous (86.5% versus 28.8%), and genital (78.0% versus 37.5%).

Complete clearance of each special site was consistently achieved in the majority of patients who received Tremfya versus placebo: scalp (60.3% versus 9.3%), face (75.7% versus 23.9%), intertriginous (76.6% versus 24.2%) and genital (72.7% versus 32.7%).

Statistically significant improvements were also achieved across all major secondary endpoints, including:

52.9% achieved a Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI) 90 response compared to 6.2% of participants who received a placebo (p<0.001).

The average patient saw over 80% improvement from baseline for BSA and PASI compared to those who received placebo (80.6% versus 6.1% and 82.6% versus 13.7%, respectively; p<0.001).

In the third quarter, Tremfya generated global sales of $1.01 billion, 13% year over year.

Last month, the FDA approved Tremfya for adults with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis, a chronic disease of the large intestine in which the colon lining becomes inflamed.

The European Medicines Agency is reviewing Tremfya for adults with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. 

Price Action: JNJ stock is down 1.49% at $161.23 at the last check on Friday.

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