New report shows more than 300 skin disease medicines in development

More than 100 million Americans – one third of the U.S. population – suffer from skin conditions.

Because these conditions affect the human body’s largest organ, they often have a significant impact on a patient’s daily life.

However, there is promise in the pipeline for many of these conditions. Today, PhRMA released the 2018 Medicines in Development Report for Skin Diseases showing more than 300 new medicines in development to treat skin diseases – all of which are in clinical trials or awaiting review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Of the medicines in development, 69 are for skin cancer treatment, including 48 for melanoma – the deadliest form of skin cancer which impacts 90,000 Americans annually.

New advances in biopharmaceutical research provide more insight into skin conditions and lay the groundwork for a new generation of skin treatments and breakthroughs, including:

• A potential first-in-class antibacterial to treat serious and drug-resistant acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSI) in both the hospital and community settings;
• A monoclonal antibody targeting interleukin-17 (IL-17A) to treat severe inflammatory acne, which may also help treat moderate to severe chronic hidradenitis suppurativa, a rare disease characterized by painful inflammation of the skin;
• And an immune checkpoint modulator targeting the PD-1 checkpoint protein, high levels of which were discovered in some basal cell carcinoma.

As the organ protecting the rest of the body from disease and harm, we must continue to advance molecular and genomic research to better understand the underlying causes and develop innovative treatments of diseases affecting the skin.

Biopharmaceutical companies are using cutting edge research to reduce the destructive toll of skin diseases. Medicines in the development pipeline today build on the progress made by existing treatments and use new approaches to treat these conditions.

For a full list of the new medicines, click here.