Moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis: Astegolimab fails to reduce disease severity in phase 2 trial

Key clinical point: Astegolimab, despite being well-tolerated, did not lessen the severity of the disease in patients with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis (AD).

Major finding: At week 16, the adjusted mean percent changes in the mean Eczema Area and Severity Index score were comparable in the astegolimab (−51.47%) and placebo (−58.24%) groups ( = .5624). A lower proportion of patients who received astegolimab vs placebo reported ≥1 adverse event of grade 1 or 2 severity (41.2% vs 58.1%).

Study details: Findings are from a phase 2 trial including 65 adult patients with moderate-to-severe AD and inadequate response to topical medications who were randomly assigned to receive 490 mg astegolimab or placebo every 4 weeks for 16 weeks and were further followed-up for 8 weeks.

Disclosures: This study was supported by Genentech, Inc. Six authors declared serving as employees of Genentech, Inc., a member of the Roche group, and owning stocks in Roche. The other authors reported ties with several sources, including Roche.

Source: Maurer M et al. Phase 2 randomized clinical trial of astegolimab in patients with moderate to severe atopic dermatitis. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2022 (Aug 27). Doi: 10.1016/j.jaci.2022.08.015