A person scratch psoriasis on their head skin with both hands — coverage from STAT
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Adam Feuerstein is a senior writer and biotech columnist, reporting on the crossroads of drug development, business, Wall Street, and biotechnology. He is also a co-host of the weekly biotech podcast The Readout Loud and author of the newsletter Adam’s Biotech Scorecard. You can reach Adam on Signal at stataf.54.

A long-acting injectable treatment for plaque psoriasis helped 63% of patients achieve complete skin clearance in a mid-stage clinical trial, its maker, Oruka Therapeutics, reported Monday. 

Separately, Oruka said an updated analysis of blood exposure levels supported the potential for the drug, ORKA-001, to be injected just once per year. 

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Oruka still needs to conduct late-stage clinical trials, but Monday’s results bolster ORKA-001’s potential to become a new treatment for the autoimmune skin disease with remission rates equal to or greater than current commercial blockbusters Skyrizi and Bimzelx, while requiring fewer injections.

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