Additional Interim Data Supporting Long-Term Use of Vedolizumab in Patients with Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn's Disease Published in Journal of Crohn's and Colitis - Seite 3

"This latest data from GEMINI LTS provide clinicians and patients valuable information regarding the durability of treatment response to vedolizumab over time," said Michael Smyth, Executive Medical Director, Takeda Pharmaceuticals. "At Takeda, we are committed to continuing this important research to further characterize vedolizumab's benefit: risk profile as a treatment option for patients with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease."

Vedolizumab is a gut-selective humanized monoclonal antibody, approved in over 50 countries. It is the first and only biologic therapy to be approved simultaneously for the treatment of adults with moderately to severely active UC or CD who have had an inadequate response with, lost response to, or were intolerant to either conventional therapy or a tumor necrosis factor-alpha antagonist.

About Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn's Disease  
Ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD) are marked by inflammation in the GI tract. UC impacts the large intestine only, which includes the colon and the rectum. The most common symptoms of UC include abdominal discomfort and blood or pus in diarrhea. CD can impact any part of the digestive tract and common symptoms may include abdominal pain, diarrhea, rectal bleeding, weight loss, and fever. There is no known cause for UC or CD, although many researchers believe that the interaction between genes, the body's immune system, and environmental factors play a role. The aim of UC and CD treatments is to induce and maintain remission, or achieve extended periods of time when patients do not experience symptoms. 

About Entyvio^® (vedolizumab) 
Vedolizumab, developed for the treatment of UC and CD, is a humanized monoclonal antibody that is designed to specifically antagonize the alpha4beta7 integrin, inhibiting the binding of alpha4beta7 to intestinal mucosal address in cell adhesion molecule 1 (MAdCAM-1) and fibronectin, but not vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM-1).  MAdCAM-1 is preferentially expressed on blood vessels and lymph nodes of the gastrointestinal tract. The alpha4beta7 integrin is expressed on a subset of circulating white blood cells. These cells have been shown to play a role in mediating the inflammatory process in UC and CD.  By inhibiting alpha4beta7, vedolizumab may limit the ability of certain white blood cells to infiltrate gut tissues.