Fifty two new treatment options for dry eye disease (DED), some with promising new mechanisms of action (MOA), are in the pipeline, offering new hope for practitioners and patients alike. According to GlobalData, of the 52 treatments currently in Phase 1, 2, and 3 studies across the United States, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom, Japan, China and India, 16 are in Phase 3 development.
“Key opinion leaders (KOLs) interviewed by GlobalData were generally excited by the breadth of development in this area, as well as the novel MOA of these pipeline products. Some explore new avenues for tackling DED, such as improving the function of meibomian glands or inhibiting the formation of toxic metabolites, and these have generally boded well with KOLs,” said Vinie Varkey, Senior Analyst of Neurology and Ophthalmology at GlobalData.
“One of the major unmet needs within DED is the need for therapies with new MOAs. With this in mind, there is an anticipation that some of these pipeline products, if not all, will be able to address this major need. For example, RegeneRx Biopharmaceuticals’ RGN-259 (a preservativefree, topical eye drop) is proposed to improve corneal wound healing by down regulation of proinflammatory cytokines or Novaliq’s NOV03 that is understood to improve the function of the meibomian gland,” said Ms Varkey.
