FDA approves first treatment for alopecia
LEXINGTON - The FDA just approved the first treatment of alopecia areata or baldness. The drug known as Olumiant from Eli Lilly works by blocking the immune system from attacking hair follicles.
And they are not the only company about to change lives.
Lexington-based Concert Pharmaceuticals says it has its own treatment which has been successful in clinical trials.
CEO Roger Tung says the pill currently known as CTP-543, brings back a full head of hair in more than 40% of its patients. "We have what we believe could be the best class agent for the treatment of alopecia areata," Tung said.
Famous faces like Jada Pinkett-Smith and Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley both live with the condition.
Unlike male pattern baldness, which is based on hormones, alopecia areata is an autoimmune disease that attacks hair follicles and could be brought on by stress. Concert's treatment prevents T-cells from going after the hair follicles.
Dr. Maryann Makredes Senna is the Director of the Lahey Hair Loss Clinic of Excellence says patients often suffer physically and mentally.
"Those patients carry a significant psycho-social burden," says Senna. "They're perceived as being sick, treated as being sick."
But the FDA-approved Eli Lilly pill and Concert's treatment could change all of that.
"Results are amazing. And I call it the smile factor," says Senna. "People come in and they don't have their hair and they just don't feel like there is any hope or treatments. And when they have their hair, they're like I have my life back. And they say I feel like I have myself back and they're smiling."