Pfizer’s ritlecitinib hits goal in alopecia phase 3, setting up showdown with Lilly
“Pfizer’s alopecia therapy has been linked to a reduction in hair loss in early topline clinical data, setting the stage for a scrap with Eli Lilly and Incyte in the title fight for a potential blockbuster opportunity.
Ritlecitinib has met its primary endpoint in a phase 2b/3 clinical trial of patients with alopecia areata, Pfizer reported Wednesday. The update on the JAK3/TEC inhibitor comes months after Eli Lilly and Incyte reported late-phase success in alopecia.
There are currently no FDA-approved treatments for alopecia, an autoimmune disease characterized by hair loss, but multiple drugs could come to market in the indication over the coming years. Pfizer’s ritlecitinib joined Lilly and Incyte’s Olumiant on the list of drugs to hit the primary endpoint in pivotal alopecia trials on Wednesday—and Concert Pharmaceuticals is following closely behind.”
