Abstract
Peficitinib is a Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor, newly developed and approved in Japan. In contrast to other JAK inhibitors, it is a unique pan-JAK inhibitor, demonstrating inhibition of all JAKs. In patients with rheumatoid arthritis with an inadequate response to previous disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs, the efficacy of peficitinib (100 mg and 150 mg) has been confirmed with a comparison to placebo in Phase 2b and 3 trials conducted in Asia. Reportedly, peficitinib was well tolerated for 52 weeks during the trial duration, as well as for the next few years in a subsequent, ongoing long-term extension study. Safety signals, especially, the increased risk of herpes zoster was comparable with other JAK inhibitors.
Acknowledgments
None.
Conflicts of interest
YK has received grants or speaking fees from AbbVie, Astellas, Ayumi, Bristol–Myers Squibb, Chugai, Eisai, Eli Lilly, Hisamitsu, Jansen, Kissei, Kirin, Novartis, Pfizer, Sanofi, Takeda, Taisho, Tanabe-Mitsubishi, and UCB.