Novartis presents ground-breaking Phase III results showing AIN457 (secukinumab) significant efficacy in ankylosing spondylitis patients

More than 60% of secukinumab 150 mg patients achieved significant improvements in AS symptoms, seen as early as Week 1 and sustained through one year of treatment ,. Secukinumab is the first selective IL-17A inhibitor to significantly improve signs and symptoms of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) versus placebo in Phase III studies , Up to 40% of AS patients have inadequate or no response to standard of care anti-TNF (tumor-necrosis-factor) medicines ; secukinumab is the first non anti-TNF biologic to show significant efficacy in AS patients , - Basel, November 15, 2014 - Novartis announced today results from the MEASURE 1 and MEASURE 2 pivotal Phase III studies of AIN457 (secukinumab) in ankylosing spondylitis (AS). In the studies, secukinumab met the primary endpoint demonstrating rapid and statistically significant improvements versus placebo in the signs and symptoms of AS. More than 60% of secukinumab 150 mg patients achieved an ASAS20 response, a standard tool used to assess clinical improvement in AS, in MEASURE 1 (p<0.0001) and MEASURE 2 (p<0. This is in comparison to 28.7% and 28.4% of placebo patients who achieved ASAS20 in MEASURE 1 and MEASURE 2, respectively. Detailed study results will be presented during a plenary session (MEASURE 1) and in a late breaker poster presentation (MEASURE 2) at the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) Congress in Boston, USA. AS is a common type of spondyloarthritis (SpA), a family of long-term, inflammatory diseases impacting joints , which affects up to 1% of the general population.