Nektar drug Rezpeg maintains skin response in eczema patients

Adam Feuerstein is a senior writer and biotech columnist, reporting on the crossroads of drug development, business, Wall Street, and biotechnology. He is also a co-host of the weekly biotech podcast The Readout Loud and author of the newsletter Adam’s Biotech Scorecard. You can reach Adam on Signal at stataf.54.

Nektar Therapeutics said Tuesday that monthly and quarterly injections of its experimental drug, called rezpeg, enabled 71% and 83% of patients with moderate-to-severe eczema, respectively, to maintain stringent skin-lesion improvements after one year.

The results from Nektar’s maintenance study met and in some cases exceeded investor expectations — positioning rezpeg as a treatment with the potential to compete strongly against Dupixent and Ebglyss, the two most commonly prescribed biologic drugs for eczema, also known as atopic dermatitis. 

“When you compare our results competitively, we’re showing better efficacy with less frequent injections,” said Mary Tagliaferri, Nektar’s chief medical officer, in an interview with STAT.