Photo: Courtesy of Concert Pharmaceuticals
LEXINGTON, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — A pharmaceutical company in Lexington is working on a breakthrough drug that could help people with Alopecia.
Alopecia is a disease where the body attacks its own hair follicles, which can lead to a person losing hair and even going bald. However, Concert Pharmaceuticals is working on a new drug that could help those with alopecia grow back some of the hair they've lost.
The company is in advanced trials with the drug, called CTP-543, which is an oral medication taken twice a day in either a small eight-milligram dose or a larger 12-milligram dose.
Early results have found that nearly 30 percent of participants who took the small dose regimen and nearly 40 percent of participants who took the large dose regimen had almost 80 percent of their hair grow back over a six-month period. Concert CEO Dr. Roger Tung told WBZ's Jim MacKay they've continued to see positive results in the trials.
"[What we found with] continued treatment after the six-month period is that those numbers continue to go up," Dr. Tung said.
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Concert has one more trial with the drug before it will submit it to the FDA for approval. Dr. Tung said they plan to submit it sometime at the beginning of next year.
"The team here has worked incredibly hard over many years to provide [this drug]," Dr. Tung said. "We're very hopeful."
WBZ's Jim MacKay (@JimMacKayOnAir) reports.
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