An article has been published last week in Ophthalmology Retina that provides new guidance for retina specialists on managing events of intraocular inflammation, retinal vasculitis, and/or vascular occlusion should they occur following treatment with brolucizumab or other anti-VEGFs. The findings are an initial output of the multidisciplinary Beovu® (brolucizumab) coalition convened by Novartis. It is one of a set of planned outputs from the coalition, which is leveraging the expertise of 70 scientists around the world and about 30 global medical experts.
Currently, there is limited guidance on the management of the spectrum of inflammation that may occur following anti-VEGF treatment in neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD). The publication is significant in that it offers recommendations that may potentially minimize the risk of progression within this spectrum. The authors had conducted a comprehensive review of the literature and assessment of clinical trial data and real-world experience to provide methods for early diagnosis, prompt and timely intervention with intensive treatment and frequent monitoring.
In other news, new Phase III data on Beovu had been presented at the recent EURETINA 2020 virtual congress. In post-hoc analyses of the HAWK and HARRIER trials, fewer Beovu (brolucizumab) patients were found with early persistent fluid (12.5% vs. 20.4% of aflibercept patients), defined as the presence of intra-retinal fluid and/or sub-retinal fluid through week 12 of treatment. Patients with early persistent fluid treated with Beovu experienced greater gains in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) at week 96 versus patients treated with aflibercept (6.4 vs. 3.7 letters, respectively). These data suggest that Beovu can better help patients who have persistent retinal fluid achieve disease control by reducing CST and improving their vision in the long term.
Full news release from Novartis.