Understanding Infliximab in Crohn’s Disease: The Long-Term Outcomes

Excerpt

Only a few years elapsed from the first clinical trial of infliximab in Crohn’s disease (CD) in 1997 [1] to its widespread use in clinical practice [2]. This is a short interval given the novelty of the drug and its shockingly high cost. The rapid acceptance of the anti-TNF therapies despite the lack of long-term data could be easily understood in light of the striking unmet need for effective salvage therapies that was present prior to the anti-TNF era, when only one-third of patients had mild disease, judged longitudinally [3]. Indeed, anti-TNF medications brought rapid change to the management of IBD and improved the quality of life of countless patients. Accompanied by massive industry-driven aggressive marketing, more anti-TNF drugs have been introduced including adalimumab, certolizumab pegol and golimumab, contributing further to the increasing use of biologics in IBD. …