Immunology

1st New Lupus Drug in More Than 50 Years

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday gave lupus patients their first new treatment option in more than 50 years when it approved Benlysta as a way to ease the painful symptoms of this debilitating autoimmune disorder. Injected directly into a vein, Benlysta is the first drug designed to target a protein that may reduce the number of abnormal B cells believed to be at the root of lupus, the FDA said in a news release. The last lupus drugs approved by the agency were Plaquenil (hydroxychloroquine) and corticosteroids; both were given the agency's blessing in 1955. Back in 1948, aspirin was approved to treat the disease. Lupus strikes women far more often than men, and symptoms typically first appear between the ages of 15 and 44. The joints, skin, kidneys, lungs, heart and brain can all be affected, and when symptoms flare up they include swelling in the joints or joint pain, light sensitivity, fever, chest pain, hair loss and fatigue, the FDA said.
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