Novartis Healthcare Private Limited announced the launch of Scapho (secukinumab)150 mg, for the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis in adult patients.

Scapho is an injectable medicine and the first interleukin-17A (IL-17A) inhibitor to be approved in India2.This approval marks a significant milestone in the treatment of psoriasis, providing a new and important first-line biologic treatment option for patients who are candidates for systemic therapy.

Secukinumab was developed for the treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis in adult patients who are candidates for systemic therapy with a recommended dose of 300 mg. Secukinumab has demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in clearing psoriatic lesions as early as 3 weeks.

"This is groundbreaking news as clear skin can now be a reality for patients struggling to cope with psoriasis," said Dr. Anchala Parthasaradhi, Director - Anchala Skin Institute - Hyderabad. "Most psoriasis patients are not content with current therapy options including the earlier biologics and there is a significant unmet need. Secukinumab seems to be a promising treatment for psoriasis and can provide patients a better chance of achieving clear or almost clear skin. Importantly this therapy comes as an alternative to treatments that have significant side effects."

"At Novartis, our mission to discover new ways to improve and extend people's lives underscores our values and we are very happy to launch Scapho® in India for the treatment of moderate to severe psoriasis," said Jawed Zia, Country President, Novartis India. "This signifies an important turning point in the treatment of psoriasis in India. Patients in India, can now benefit from this treatment as it has the proven ability to offer clear or almost clear skin."

The key treatment goal for psoriasis patients is achieving clear skin. In clinical studies, 70% or more patients on secukinumab 300 mg achieved clear skin (PASI 100) or almost clear skin (PASI 90), during the first 16 weeks of treatment and importantly, this was maintained with continued treatment in the majority of patients up to Week 52. Data from the Scapho clinical trial program also showed a significant positive relationship between achieving clear to almost clear skin and psoriasis patients' health-related quality of life.