New drug for psoriasis released
A new drug called Cosentyx to treat the painful skin condition psoriasis has been approved by The U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Psoriasis is a skin condition caused by dysfunction of the immune system. Patients with plaque psoriasis, the most common form of the disease, develop thick, red skin with flaky, silver-white patches called scales.
The drug, by Novartis AG’s comes in an injection, contains secukinumab, a part of an eagerly anticipated class of drugs that have shown unprecedented success in treating psoriasis by targeting the inflammation-causing protein interleukin-17 (IL-17).
An advisory panel to the FDA unanimously recommended approval for the injectable biologic, or protein-based drug cultured from living cells, in October.
