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Timber Pharmaceuticals is on its way to developing the first FDA-approved treatment for congenital ichthyosis subtypes.
Data from a sub-analysis of Timber Pharmaceuticals’ phase 2b CONTROL study evaluating the safety and efficacy of TMB-001 for the treatment of congenital ichthyosis (CI) was recently published online in Clinical and Experimental Dermatology.1 In the 12-week analysis, TMB-001, a topical isotretinoin, reduced signs and symptoms of autosomal recessive congenital ichthyosis (ARCI) and X-linked recessive ichthyosis (XLRI) and was well-tolerated among patients.
In a recent interview with Dermatology Times®, Christopher Bunick, MD, PhD, associate professor of dermatology at Yale School of Medicine and principal investigator of the CI trials at Yale University, noted, “Physically, patients with ichthyoses generally produce a lot of scale. This scale can cover many parts, if not all parts, of their body and in moderate-to-severe cases, the scale can be thick and constantly shedding. This presents an aesthetic problem, where other people clearly recognize the scale and that the person has a ‘disease’, and this feeds into the emotional challenges...There is never a resting moment when someone isn't looking or judging their skin.”
Thirty-three patients participated in the CONTROL study and were randomized to TMB-001 0.05% (n=11), TMB-001 0.1% (n=10), or a twice daily vehicle (n=12), divided by CI subtype, for 12 weeks. CONTROL’s primary endpoint was the proportion of patients with a 50% or greater reduction versus baseline in Visual Index for Ichthyosis Severity (VIIS) scaling. The key secondary endpoint was a 2-grade or greater reduction in Investigator Global Assessment (IGA) scaling score versus baseline. Out of the 33 enrolled patients, 52% had ARCI and 48% had XLRI subtypes.
The intent-to-treat (ITT) population included all randomized patients who received one or more doses of the study medication. The per-protocol (PP) population included all patients who met the inclusion criteria, complied with treatment (≥80%–120% of study drug applied), had a VIIS scaling measurement at the end of week 12, and had no major protocol violations.
Key results from CONTROL include:
Alan Mendelsohn, MD, chief medical officer of Timber Pharmaceuticals, noted that TMB-001 has been granted orphan designation for ARCI and XLRI subtypes by the European Commission, and the recent data from the sub-analysis supports Timber’s evaluation of TMB-001 in its current pivotal phase 3 clinical trial.
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