PFE Pfizer Inc

By Colin Kellaher

Pfizer Inc. on Wednesday said a Phase 2b/3 study of oral, once-daily ritlecitinib met its main endpoint in patients with alopecia areata, an autoimmune disease that causes hair loss on the scalp and can also affect the face and body.

The New York drugmaker said ritlecitinib achieved the primary efficacy endpoint of the proportion of patients with scalp hair loss of 20% or less after six months of treatment versus placebo.

Pfizer said the data, along with results from an ongoing long-term study, will form the basis for planned future regulatory filings, adding that there are currently no approved treatments in the U.S. or Europe for alopecia areata.

Pfizer is also studying ritlecitinib for vitiligo, rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.

Write to Colin Kellaher at colin.kellaher@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 04, 2021 07:39 ET (11:39 GMT)

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