| Title: |
A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of losmapimod in patients with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy: Results of the REACH study |
| Authors: |
Voermans, Nicol C; Statland, Jeffrey M; Hayward, Lawrence J; Rosenbohm, Angela; López de Munain, Adolfo; Sacconi, Sabrina; Leung, Doris G; Badrising, Umesh A; Vissing, John; Schoser, Benedikt; Muelas, Nuria; Lochmüller, Hanns; Bugiardini, Enrico; Wang, Leo H; Maggi, Lorenzo; Ragole, Thomas; Pestronk, Alan; Hamel, Johanna I; Goyal, Namita A; Korngut, Lawrence; Naddaf, Elie; Harper, Amy; Shieh, Perry B; Kornblum, Cornelia; Sansone, Valeria; Genge, Angela; Tasca, Giorgio; Jiang, John; Jouvin, Marie-Helene; Tawil, Rabi |
| Contributors: |
Neurology |
| Publication Year: |
2026 |
| Collection: |
University of Massachusetts, Medical School: eScholarship@UMMS |
| Subject Terms: |
DUX4; Facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy; quantitative dynamometry; reachable workspace; skeletal muscle loss |
| Description: |
BACKGROUND: Losmapimod is an orally administered small molecule and selective p38α/β mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) inhibitor able to reduce aberrant expression of and thereby potentially slowing disease progression in patients with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD). OBJECTIVE: This global, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind phase 3 study in patients with FSHD1 and FSHD2 examined the efficacy and safety of losmapimod over a 48-week treatment period compared to placebo (NCT05397470, EUDRACT 2022-000389-16). METHODS: The primary endpoint was change in quantification of reachable workspace (RWS) expressed as relative surface area (RSA). Other endpoints included measures of muscle composition (fat content and lean muscle) using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), muscle strength using quantitative dynamometry, and quality of life measures. RESULTS: 130 participants received losmapimod and 130 participants received placebo, with 252 participants completing the 48-week treatment period. There were no statistically significant differences between groups in change in RSA and all secondary efficacy endpoints from baseline to Week 48. Losmapimod treatment was well-tolerated, and most adverse events were mild. CONCLUSIONS: Losmapimod was generally well tolerated with a favorable safety profile at a dose of 15 mg twice daily. Although none of the efficacy endpoints were met, study design and data from the study may inform future studies of FSHD therapies. ; No embargo |
| Document Type: |
article in journal/newspaper |
| File Description: |
application/pdf |
| Language: |
unknown |
| Relation: |
Journal of Neuromuscular Diseases; https://doi.org/10.1177/22143602261419558; https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14038/55170 |
| DOI: |
10.1177/22143602261419558 |
| Availability: |
https://doi.org/10.1177/22143602261419558; https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14038/55170 |
| Rights: |
Creative Commons CC BY: This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) which permits any use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access page (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage). ; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
| Accession Number: |
edsbas.773B5939 |
| Database: |
BASE |