(Reuters) – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has allowed the expanded use of Johnson & Johnson’s drug, Tremfya, to treat adults with a type of chronic inflammatory bowel disease, the company said on Wednesday.
The approval paves the way for another treatment option for patients with ulcerative colitis, which causes inflammation and ulcers in the colon and rectum.
Drugmakers such as AbbVie, Eli Lilly and J&J are hustling for a share in an already-crowded, multi-billion market for treatments for inflammatory bowel diseases.
J&J has been betting on Tremfya, as its other blockbuster drug for psoriasis and ulcerative colitis, Stelara, is looking at a patent cliff — which occurs when a company loses its patent protection, allowing cheaper biosimilars to enter the market.
In a late-stage trial, patients receiving Tremfya were able to achieve endoscopic remission — a state where no signs of inflammation, ulcers or bleeding are visible during an endoscopy.
(Reporting by Sriparna Roy, Bhanvi Satija and Puyaan Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Krishna Chandra Eluri)
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