October 7, 2003
Drug May Block Crohn’s Inflammation
CHICAGO— An investigational drug under study by Alan L. Buchman, MD, associate professor of medicine at Northwestern’s Feinberg School of Medicine, may block the intense abdominal pain, diarrhea, bleeding, and other symptoms of Crohn’s disease, a condition of unknown cause that affects up to 1 million Americans.
After receiving the experimental drug, called CNI-1493, Lynn Rogers, who has Crohn’s disease, experienced a complete remission of her disabling symptoms for more than eight months.
Rogers, 40, a third-grade teacher in Corpus Christi, Texas, who was one of the first people in the United States to receive the drug, was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease in 1997.
None of the standard treatments for Crohn’s disease Rogers received, including corticosteroids, imfliximab, and medications that suppress the immune system—which normally are used for transplant patients—were effective.
CNI-1493 is a mitogen-activated protein kinase inhibitor, a substance that prevents an enzyme from causing white blood cells to produce chemicals that cause inflammation.
Dr. Buchman is conducting a new study of CNI-1493, but only Crohn’s disease patients who have never received the drug are eligible to participate