(Health Korea News / Park Won-jin) AstraZeneca Korea (CEO Jeon Se-hwan) held a press conference on the 10th to commemorate the application of Ultomiris® injection (ingredient name: ravulizumab) to atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome (aHUS). was held and conveyed the importance of early treatment of aHUS and the clinical value of Ultomiris®.
aHUS is an acute rare disease in which the complement of the immune system is overactivated due to a genetic defect and causes Thrombotic Microangiopathy Syndrome (TMA). This can cause serious damage to several organs, especially the kidneys.
At the meeting on this day, Professor Kim Jin-seok of the Department of Hematology at Yonsei University Severance Hospital and Lee Hyeong-du, managing director of AstraZeneca Korea’s Department of Medicine, participated as speakers to discuss ▲’Ultomiris’, a new option for aHUS disease treatment, and the way forward ▲’Ultomiris’ in the treatment of aHUS The clinical value of ‘Immediate, Complete*, and Sustained’ was explained.
Professor Jinseok Kim pointed out the disease characteristics and risks of aHUS and introduced the benefits of Ultomiris® as a new treatment option following Soliris®. He said, “Ultomiris® is a follow-up treatment developed by changing four amino acids in the basic structure of Soliris®, and unlike the existing Soliris® when administered at two-week intervals, the half-life has been extended by more than 4 times, greatly improving the convenience of administration for patients.” “He explained.
He continued, “Ultomiris® showed a significant therapeutic effect in aHUS patients regardless of age,” and “In Study 311, a phase 3 clinical study targeting adult patients with no experience of complement inhibitor treatment, 53.6% of patients had a HUS at 26 weeks of treatment. “An improvement in TMA-related indicators such as platelet and LDH levels was confirmed in the patient,” he said. “We confirmed the continuous terminal complement inhibition effect by maintaining the serum free C5 concentration below 0.5 μg/ml.” He added, “Study 312, a phase 3 clinical study targeting pediatric patients, showed that TMA completely disappeared in 94.4% of patients at 50 weeks of treatment.”
Professor Kim said, “In a study on pediatric aHUS patients who switched from Soliris® to Ultomiris®, kidney and hematological indicators remained stable for one year, confirming the effectiveness of the drug switch,” and “Especially the effectiveness. He emphasized, “The fact that the administration interval is longer while maintaining the effect provides great convenience to aHUS patients, and the application of insurance coverage for Ultomiris® is very encouraging news for both patients and their families.”
Kim Cheol-woong, Executive Director of AstraZeneca Korea’s Rare Disease Division, said, “The application of aHUS insurance coverage for Ultomiris® has opened the opportunity for patients to look forward to their daily lives in a stable treatment environment.” He added, “The dosing interval for Ultomiris® has been reduced compared to the existing Soliris®. “It is a huge advantage to provide convenience of treatment to both patients and their guardians, as the number of cases has increased significantly compared to the previous week,” he said.
Meanwhile, Ultomiris® recently received health insurance coverage for aHUS patients with thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA) and kidney damage. This is expected to improve access to treatment for aHUS patients, whose symptoms can rapidly worsen and lead to end-stage renal disease (ESRD).
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