Positive data on Esbriet (InterMune) in patients with Pulmonary Fibrosis

New analyses of data from the RECAP extension study of Esbriet (pirfenidone), from InterMune, show that patients with mild-to-moderate Pulmonary Fibrosis (PF) newly-treated with Esbriet in RECAP for 60 weeks had similar FVC and survival outcomes when compared to those treated with Esbriet for the same duration as in previous studies (the CAPACITY trial).

The new analyses showed that the proportion of patients who experienced a 10% or greater decline in FVC at week 60 was 16.3% among patients newly treated with Esbriet in RECAP, compared with 16.8% in the Esbriet group in CAPACITY. Results showed that overall survival at 60 weeks was similar in patients newly treated with Esbriet in RECAP and CAPACITY, and greater than that of patients who were treated with placebo in CAPACITY.

Additionally, fewer deaths occurring within 28 days of the last dose of study drug were observed among Esbriet-treated patients in both RECAP and CAPACITY compared with patients who were treated with placebo during CAPACITY. The results were presented at the Annual Congress of the European Respiratory Society by Dr. Ulrich Costabel of the Ruhrlandklinik, Essen, Germany.