Medical need

Primarily, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is treated with a conventional csDMARD such as MTX. However, for about 30 percent of patients, a more advanced treatment with biological drugs is required, primarily TNF-α inhibitors, but also other cytokine-, JAK-, or T-cell inhibitors are available as treatment options. Despite advancements, many patients experience inadequate efficacy or problematic side effects.

The largest share of the market for biological drugs (bDMARDs) consists of TNF-α inhibitors. However, they have insufficient or completely absent effect in approximately 30 percent of patients. Another third of patients discontinue treatment within 2-3 years due to diminishing efficacy or drug-related side effects. In some cases, alternative TNF-α inhibitors are explored or JAK inhibitors are considered, but their side effect profiles impose significant limitations. Side effects include cardiovascular disease, blood clots, cancer, and severe infections. Therefore, it is clear that there is a need for new effective drugs that work through different mechanisms of action and with fewer side effects. Lipum assesses that a similar, if not larger, medical need exists for several other chronic inflammatory diseases.