5th JAK inhibitor Jyseleca lands in general hospitals in KOR

May be prescribed at general hospitals in Korea

Passed the drug committees of medical institutions including Asan Medical Center and Hanyang University Hospital

Enters market in earnest after being listed for reimbursement in November last year

Another JAK inhibitor can now be prescribed at general hospitals in Korea.

 

According to industry sources, Gilead's Jyseleca (filgotinib) has passed the drug committee (DC) review of major national hospitals and medical institutions like Seoul Asan Medical Center and Hanyang University Hospital.

 

After the drug was approved for reimbursement in November last year, its company is now starting to compete for prescriptions in earnest.

 

Jyseleca was first approved with reimbursement as a treatment for rheumatoid arthritis and moderate-to-severe active ulcerative colitis.

 

Patients eligible for reimbursement are those with either of the conditions and do not respond adequately to or are intolerant to existing treatment, and include those who show inadequate response or are intolerant to TNF-α inhibitors among patients aged 65 years and older.

 

Jyseleca received a conditional reimbursement decision for the rheumatoid arthritis and ulcerative colitis indications from HIRA’s Drug Reimbursement Evaluation Committee in July last year.

 

At the time, DREC judged that reimbursement was adequate if the company accepted a price below than the evaluated amount.

 

Eisai Korea then accepted a price less than 90% of the weighted average price of alternative drugs, and omitted insurance price ceiling negotiations with the National Health Insurance Service and quickly received reimbursement in Korea.

 

JAK inhibitors currently available in Korea include ‘Xeljanz (tofacitinib),’ ‘Olumiant (baricitinib),’ and 'Rinvoq (upadacitinib).’ How well Jyseleca will be able to exert its influence amid these drugs remains to be seen.

 

Meanwhile, Jyseleca (filgotinib) is an adenosine triphosphate (ATP) a competitive and reversible inhibitor that selectively inhibits JAK1.

 

JAK1 is a substance that transmits inflammatory cytokine signals and is considered a major treatment target for rheumatoid arthritis.

 

Some of the recent treatments that were released inhibit JAK2 or JAK3, depending on their mechanism of action, but there is some opinion that both mechanisms are involved in immune cell proliferation and homeostasis regulation, and may cause adverse reactions.

 

The drug's efficacy was demonstrated through Phase III trials, including FINCH1, FINCH2, and FINCH3.

 

In the FINCH1 study, Jyseleca 200mg improved arthritis symptoms by more than 20% at 12 weeks when administered to patients with moderate-to-severe active RA (rheumatoid arthritis) despite continued methotrexate (MTX) treatment.