Dupixent® (dupilumab) now approved in European Union for severe chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis

• First biologic approved in the European Union for adults with severe chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis (CRSwNP)
• Dupixent now approved in the EU for three type 2 inflammatory diseases: severe CRSwNP, severe asthma and moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis

PARIS and TARRYTOWN, NY – October 29, 2019 – The European Commission (EC) today approved a new indication for Dupixent^® (dupilumab) in chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis (CRSwNP). Dupixent is indicated as an add-on therapy with intranasal corticosteroids for the treatment of adults with severe CRSwNP for whom therapy with systemic corticosteroids and/or surgery do not provide adequate disease control.

“People living with severe CRSwNP, are often desperate to find new treatment options given that current standard treatments such as intermittent courses of systemic corticosteroids or sinonasal surgery are associated with disease recurrence,” said George D. Yancopoulos, M.D., Ph.D., President and Chief Scientific Officer at Regeneron. “Dupixent significantly improved the signs and symptoms of severe CRSwNP, and also eliminated the need for further surgery or corticosteroid use in approximately three-quarters of patients. Today’s approval provides patients in Europe with the first biologic treatment to address the type 2 inflammation that underlies most CRSwNP. This is the third type 2 disease in which Dupixent has been approved, and we continue to investigate Dupixent in a broad range of type 2 inflammatory diseases.”

CRSwNP is a chronic disease of the upper airway that obstructs the sinuses and nasal passages. It can lead to persistent breathing difficulties, nasal congestion and discharge, reduced or loss of sense of smell and taste, and facial pressure or pain..

“Many patients with CRSwNP have co-morbid asthma, and those patients tend to have more severe disease that is often more difficult to treat,” said John Reed, M.D., Ph.D., Global Head of Research and Development at Sanofi. “These particular patients may have an increased risk of asthma attacks, high symptom burden and a substantial adverse impact on health-related quality of life. Nearly 60 percent of the patients in the CRSwNP trials had asthma, and the data showed Dupixent provided an additional benefit of improved lung function in these patients.”

Efficacy and Safety from Clinical Trials

The EC approval is based on two pivotal Phase 3 trials (the 24-week SINUS-24 and 52-week SINUS-52) that evaluated Dupixent 300 mg every two weeks plus standard-of-care intranasal corticosteroids compared to placebo plus intranasal corticosteroids. In these trials, Dupixent significantly improved key disease measures and met all primary and secondary endpoints. At 24 weeks, patients treated with Dupixent achieved statistically significant improvements in all primary and secondary endpoints, including:

      ·Co-primary endpoints:

·          

• 57% and 51% improvement in their nasal congestion/obstruction severity compared to a 19% and 15% improvement with placebo in SINUS-24 and SINUS-52, respectively (least squares [LS] mean change from baseline of ‑1.34 and -1.25 for Dupixent compared to -0.45 and -0.38 for placebo; difference between Dupixent and placebo: -0.89 and -0.87).
• 33% and 27% reduction in their nasal polyps score compared to a 7% and 4% increase with placebo in SINUS-24 and SINUS-52, respectively (LS mean change from baseline of -1.89 and -1.71 for Dupixent compared to 0.17 and 0.10 for placebo; difference between Dupixent and placebo: -2.06 and -1.80).
• Secondary endpoints:
• 42% and 27% improvement in sinus opacification compared to 4% and 0% with placebo in SINUS-24 and SINUS-52, respectively (LS mean change from baseline of -8.18 and -5.21 for Dupixent compared to -0.74 and -0.09 for placebo).
• 52% and 45% improvement in loss of smell compared to a 12% and 10% improvement for placebo in SINUS-24 and SINUS-52, respectively (LS mean difference in Dupixent compared to placebo of -1.12 and -0.98 in SINUS-24 and SINUS-52, respectively).

In a pre-specified pooled analysis of the two trials up to 52 weeks, Dupixent treatment resulted in a significant reduction of systemic corticosteroid use and the need for sino‑nasal surgery compared to placebo.

• The proportion of patients who required systemic corticosteroids was reduced by 74% with Dupixent compared to placebo.
• The proportion of patients who required surgery was reduced by 83% with Dupixent compared to placebo.

In a prespecified analysis of the 59% of patients who also had asthma, treatment with Dupixent:

• Improved lung function by 0.21 L compared with placebo as measured by forced expiratory volume over one second (FEV₁).
• Improved asthma control as measured by the 6-item Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ-6).

Treatment effects on nasal congestion and loss of smell were observed with the first assessment at 4 weeks and showed continued improvement for the duration of the trials.

In the CRSwNP clinical trials, the common (at least 1%) adverse events in the Dupixent group were inflammation of the eye and eyelids (conjunctivitis), high count of certain white blood cells (eosinophilia), injection site reactions and injection site swelling.

Dupixent is a fully human monoclonal antibody that inhibits the signaling of the interleukin-4 (IL-4) and interleukin-13 (IL-13) proteins. Data from Dupixent clinical trials have shown that IL-4 and IL-13 are key drivers of the type 2 inflammation that plays a major role in CRSwNP, asthma and atopic dermatitis.

About Dupixent

Dupixent comes in a 300 mg pre-filled syringe for patients with CRSwNP. It is given as a subcutaneous injection every other week at different injection sites. Dupixent is intended for use under the guidance of a healthcare professional and can be given in a clinic or at home by self-administration after training by a healthcare professional.

In addition to severe CRSwNP, Dupixent is approved in the EU for patients 12 years and older as an add-on maintenance treatment for severe asthma with type 2 inflammation characterized by raised blood eosinophils and/or raised fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO), who are inadequately controlled with high dose inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) plus another medicinal product for maintenance treatment. It is also approved in the EU for use in patients 12 years and older with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis who are candidates for systemic therapy.

Outside of the EU, Dupixent is approved for use in specific patients with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis and certain patients with asthma in a number of other countries around the world, including the U.S. and Japan. Dupixent is also approved in the U.S. for use with other medicines to treat CRSwNP in adults whose disease is not controlled.

Dupilumab Development Program

In addition to the currently approved indications, Regeneron and Sanofi are also studying dupilumab in a broad range of clinical development programs for diseases driven by allergic and other type 2 inflammation, including pediatric asthma (6 to 11 years of age, Phase 3), pediatric atopic dermatitis (6 months to 5 years of age, Phase 2/3 and 6 to 11 years of age, Phase 3), eosinophilic esophagitis (Phase 2/3), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (Phase 3) and food and environmental allergies (Phase 2). Dupilumab is also being studied in combination with REGN3500 (SAR440340), which targets IL-33. These potential uses are investigational and the safety and efficacy have not been evaluated by any regulatory authority. Dupilumab is being jointly developed by Sanofi and Regeneron under a global collaboration agreement.

About Regeneron

Regeneron (NASDAQ: REGN) is a leading biotechnology company that invents life-transforming medicines for people with serious diseases. Founded and led for 30 years by physician-scientists, our unique ability to repeatedly and consistently translate science into medicine has led to seven FDA-approved treatments and numerous product candidates in development, all of which were homegrown in our laboratories. Our medicines and pipeline are designed to help patients with eye diseases, allergic and inflammatory diseases, cancer, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, infectious diseases, pain and rare diseases.

Regeneron is accelerating and improving the traditional drug development process through our proprietary VelociSuite^® technologies, including VelocImmune^® which uses a unique genetically-humanized mouse to produce optimized fully-human antibodies and bispecific antibodies, and through ambitious research initiatives such as the Regeneron Genetics Center, which is conducting one of the largest genetics sequencing efforts in the world. 

For additional information about the company, please visit www.regeneron.com or follow @Regeneron on Twitter.