One month after the launch of Entyvio, a new treatment for moderate to severe ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease (CD), the therapy is already becoming a popular prescription among gastroenterologists in the United States, according to a survey conducted by the largest pharmaceutical company in Japan and developer of the therapy, Takeda Pharmaceuticals. The injection, which is now available to American healthcare providers, is an integrin receptor antagonist recommended for the induction and maintenance of clinical response and remission, in cases when one or more standard therapies don’t provide adequate response.

Physicians reported that the biggest advantage of Entyvio, compared to other treatments currently available, is its mechanism of action, and that almost 20 percent of them are already prescribing Entyvio to their UC or CD patients, as reported in the “LaunchTrends: Entyvio (vedolizumab) Wave 1 (U.S.)” report. The majority of the gastroenterologists also said that they are planning on prescribing it to their patients within a year, even though the risk of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) related to the use of the injection is one of the lingering concerns for most of them.

“The majority of surveyed U.S. gastroenterologists are excited about Takeda’s Entyvio, and welcome the agent with a different mechanism of action. Within the next year, we anticipate an increase in Entyvio’s use, primarily among UC and CD TNF-refractory patients,” commented Adi Reske, PhD, Decision Resources Group analyst. “Until long-term safety data are available, PML will remain a concern among some gastroenterologists, constraining Entyvio use as a first-line biologic.”

The survey revealed that TNF-refractory UC and CD patients are ideal candidates for Entyvio, however, Janssen Biotech’s Remicade and AbbVie’s Humira are likely to continue as first-line biologics the diseases. Almost half of the gastroenterologists who answered the survey reported that they were satisfied about the therapies currently available for the treatment of moderate to severe UC and CD. However, the majority agree that alternative therapies are needed, which the company believes creates a unique market opportunity for the drug.

“High opportunity exists for emerging therapies in the inflammatory bowel disease market. Improved efficacy in the acute and maintenance setting, long-term safety and more convenient dosing formulations are the highly desired attributes for products in development for UC and CD,” the analyst added.

Entyvio became available in the United States approximately a month ago when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved its commercialization in the U.S. as an alternative treatment for the two common inflammatory bowel diseases. The injection was shown effective in improving the mucosal endoscopic appearance, as well as achieving corticosteroid-free remission in UC patients, as well as clinical response and remission on CD patients, according to the clinical tests conducted by Takeda.