A breakthrough drug with the potential to relieve endometriosis-related pain with few adverse effects is nearing FDA approval.
Long-term treatments that are both safe and effective in helping patients live pain-free lives are vitally needed, but relatively few drugs have been licensed for clinical use yet.
Linzagolix, an experimental drug, may one day prove to be a far superior alternative. ObsEva, a biopharmaceutical startup, is currently testing it as a potential treatment for endometriosis-related discomfort and excessive monthly flow caused by uterine fibroids.
At the end of 2021, the results of two phase-3 clinical trials were enough to persuade the FDA to review linzagolix as a uterine fibroids treatment in the U.S.
Eventually, officials may decide to use the medicine to treat endometriosis sufferers as well.
Inflammatory endometriosis is the most common cause of pelvic discomfort in the globe and is chronic. Many patients have run out of alternatives and are dealing with persistent and unrelenting symptoms as a result of the lack of a proven cause or treatment.
The condition develops when tissue comparable to the uterus grows outside in the body, where it responds to hormones, such as estrogen, as it would on the inside of the uterus, thickening and bleeding throughout the menstrual cycle, thickening and bleeding again.
This can cause a great amount of pain, and not just during menstruation.
ObsEva recently announced "topline" results from the use of linzagolix in the treatment of women with moderate-to-severe endometriosis-related pain. Because the results of their phase 3 clinical trial have not yet been peer-reviewed, they should be interpreted with caution. However, first results are optimistic; hopefully, more information will be available soon.
In the trial, two distinct daily doses of linzagolix were evaluated, including a 200 mg dose and a 75 mg dose.
Patients were also given an "add-back" hormonal therapy with the larger dose, as linzagolix works on the brain to suppress estrogen production in the ovaries.
Linzagolix reduced severe and frequent period cramps, menstruation-related constipation (known as dyschezia), and overall pelvic pain significantly after three months, as compared to a placebo.
Improvements continued after six months. Even better, the number of side effects was restricted.
Although the medicine may not be suitable for everyone with endometriosis, it is encouraging that drug developers and pharmaceutical corporations are finally starting to pay attention to gynecological pain.
Incurable patients have a better chance of finding what works for them if they have more therapy options available.
