In a report published by King et al in The Lancet, in the phase IIb/III ALLEGRO trial, treatment with the selective dual JAK3/TEC family kinase inhibitor ritlecitinib resulted in greater reductions in Severity of Alopecia Tool (SALT) scores than placebo in patients aged 12 years and older with alopecia areata and at least 50% scalp hair loss. The therapy was also generally safe and well tolerated, though adverse events were reported in the majority of patients receiving ritlecitinib but were mostly mild or moderate in severity. The study focused on different doses of ritlecitinib and concluded that doses of 50 mg and 30 mg once a day (with or without a loading dose of 200 mg once a day) were found to be safe, efficacious, and well tolerated over the course of the study period (48 weeks). In addition to scalp hair regrowth, some eyebrow and eyelash regrowth was reported among study participants as well.
In a companion press release focusing on the findings from Yale University, first study author Brett King, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Dermatology, addressed the implications of discovering this therapy is also efficacious in an adolescent population. “This new work is a huge advancement for treating alopecia areata because the clinical trial involved adolescents in addition to adults…. Because alopecia areata frequently affects children and adolescents, it is groundbreaking to advance a medicine that shows safety and effectiveness in the treatment of younger patients.” Dr. King also touched on the social implications of the disorder among younger patients, noting an anecdote about a young girl with alopecia areata driven to suicide due to bullying surrounding her condition. “We don’t want for that to ever happen again…. [O]ne part of that is advancing medicines to reverse disease. This study of ritlecitinib is a big step in that direction.”