Patients with severe intestinal disease can benefit from a new drug that can eliminate their anxious symptoms in just three months.
Etrasimod tablet once a day treats ulcerative colitis by binding to immune cells and preventing them from mistakenly attacking healthy tissues in the lining of the gut.
In a recent study, 27% of sufferers who did not respond to other treatments were in remission after only 12 weeks, and 32% were asymptomatic after one year.
Ulcerative colitis can be debilitating, causing bloody diarrhea, severe fatigue, loss of appetite and weight loss.
It can also cause symptoms such as abdominal pain and digestive discomfort – similar to the more common irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
Etrasimod tablet once a day treats ulcerative colitis by binding to immune cells and preventing them from mistakenly attacking healthy tissues in the lining of the gut.
Dr Sami Hockey, a gastroenterologist at the Barts Health NHS Trust in London, who led the British division of the etrasimod trial, described his results as “amazing”.
He added: “When I started treating ulcerative colitis, there were very few options available and what we did caused severe side effects. The advantage of etrasimod is that it is very selective, able to target unruly inflammatory cells without affecting the immune system as a whole.
This is a significant addition to existing treatments for bowel disease and, unlike other therapies that involve injections, is available as a once-daily tablet. This puts power in the hands of patients, which means they can avoid regular hospital visits.
Ulcerative colitis is a long-term disorder that occurs when, for unknown reasons, the immune system is strengthened and attacks healthy body tissue in the lining of the colon or colon, causing inflammation and ulcers. It is one of the two main types of inflammatory bowel disease, along with Crohn’s disease.
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The condition affects approximately 146,000 people in the UK, but experts estimate that many more may be undiagnosed and that one in ten in their 50s may have some form of the disease.
Patients can endure months without symptoms before suffering a seizure. During these episodes, some patients also experience joint pain, mouth ulcers, and irritated red eyes. In the most severe cases, they can also suffer from shortness of breath, palpitations and fever.
If doctors suspect colitis, they first take a stool sample to test for a protein called calprotectin, a sign of inflammation in the gut.
If there is a positive result, a gastroenterologist will perform additional tests to look for physical signs of damage. This usually involves a colonoscopy, in which a camera is inserted into the anus and tissue is cut for examination.
First-line treatment includes tablets or suppositories containing anti-inflammatory drugs called aminosalicylates. They help to deal with mild seizures, but their effect fades over time.
Other options include powerful steroids that reduce inflammation but come with a risk of unpleasant side effects such as acne, mood swings and diabetes. Immune-suppressing drugs can also be used, but they can make patients vulnerable to infections.
If these options fail, as in 15% of cases, bowel removal surgery may be the only option.
Dr Hoque said: “Etrasimod can be used in combination with existing treatments to strengthen the body’s defenses and prevent the need for surgery.”
The drug has not yet been approved. However, experts hope that the process will begin later this year.
Romit Zutshi, 42, of Chiguel in Essex, was diagnosed with intestinal disease in 2015 and was treated with etrazimod as part of the Barts study.
The married father of one child went to his GP for the first time after he began to see blood in his stool and had to go to the toilet up to eight times a day.
He said: “It was scary not to know what was wrong with me. I started to lose weight and I was constantly tired because I woke up at night to rush to the toilet.
After failing to respond to other drugs, he was included in the 2020 etrasimod trial in Barts and saw a “drastic improvement”.
He added: “I feel more confident and I can live more or less like a normal person. I used to constantly worry about being close to the toilet when I left the house and I couldn’t play sports properly because I got tired so easily, but that’s not a problem anymore.
COUNTRY OF SCIENCE: Home-made medicine that left a fungus in a person’s veins
At the hospital, tests showed that the man’s liver and kidneys were failing because the fungus psilocybe cubensis was growing in his blood.
A man developed a life-threatening fungal infection after the fungus began to grow in his blood.
The 30-year-old American told doctors he was trying to find a way to treat his mental health problems.
After reading that psilocybin, a hallucinogenic compound found in magic mushrooms, can help cancer patients with anxiety and depression, he boiled them in tea and injected them.
In the following days he became ill, confused and began to vomit blood.
At the hospital, tests showed that his liver and kidneys were diverting as the fungus psilocybe cubensis grew in his blood.
The man spent 22 days in hospital, eight of them in the intensive care unit, with blood filtration and two courses of antibiotics, according to the Journal Of The Academy Of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry.
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