Dompe Signs Up First Patient for Reparixin Phase III Trial
Italy’s Dompe have confirmed that they have signed up their first patient onto a late-stage clinical trial evaluating reparixin as a possible treatment for type 1 diabetes.
The compound, a selective chemokine interleukin-8 inhibitor, has been shown to increase the efficacy of transplantation of insulin-producing pancreatic islets, which the company commented is “the new frontier in type 1 diabetes.”
The Phase III clinical trial will be carried out across 10 different centres in Europe and the USA on approximately 60 patients, which Dompe noted is half of the total number of patients undergoing allogeneic pancreatic islet transplantation globally.
Lorenzo Piemonti of the San Raffaele Hospital in Milan and principal investigator commented that “the idea that a targeted anti-inflammatory treatment could help pancreatic islet transplantation become a standard procedure has been confirmed in earlier clinical trials on this investigational drug.” Piemonti added that “our hope and goal is significant improvement of patient’s quality of life and lower immune suppression-related risk.”
Type 1 diabetes “is a disease which is on the rise globally with significant impact also on the young population,” observed Dompe’s chief executive, Eugenio Aringhieri. Aringhieri added that “together with the orphan drug designation granted by the US Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency, the beginning of the Phase III trial marks a key milestone.”
Type 1 diabetes affects around 20 million people worldwide, and accounts for 10% of all diabetic cases.
Links:
www.dompe.com
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