Largest studies in POMC and LEPR deficiency obesities demonstrate that treatment with setmelanotide reduced body weight and hunger
BOSTON, Oct. 30, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:RYTM), a late-stage biopharmaceutical company aimed at developing and commercializing therapies for the treatment of rare genetic disorders of obesity, announced today that results from two pivotal Phase 3 studies evaluating setmelanotide in proopiomelanocortin (POMC) deficiency obesity and leptin receptor (LEPR) deficiency obesity were published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology. As previously reported, data from the studies demonstrate that treatment with setmelanotide, the company’s melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R) agonist, led to statistically significant and clinically meaningful reductions of weight and hunger.
“Results from Rhythm’s pivotal Phase 3 studies, which are the largest studies to date in POMC and LEPR deficiency obesities, provide evidence regarding the safety and efficacy of setmelanotide and we believe they validate its potential long-term use as a novel treatment for severe obesity and hyperphagia,” said co-author Peter Kühnen, M.D., Institute for Experimental Pediatric Endocrinology, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany. “It is important to recognize the signs of these rare genetic disorders because we may soon have a targeted treatment option available for the first time for obesity disorders caused by impairments of the MC4R pathway.”
Rhythm initially reported positive topline data from the Phase 3 studies in August 2019 and subsequently presented updated data in a late-breaking research forum during the 37th Annual Meeting of The Obesity Society at ObesityWeek® 2019.
Eight of 10 participants with POMC deficiency obesity (80%; P