Celgene snags new approval for Otezla

July 22, 2019

Celgene announced that the U.S. FDA has approved Otezla for the treatment of adult patients with oral ulcers associated with Behçet’s Disease, making it the first and only treatment approved for these indications.

The drug will provide a treatment option for the five in 100,000 Americans with Behçet’s, many of whom develop mouth ulcers as a result of the condition.

But the approval will likely not benefit Celgene very much. Otezla, approved in 2014 as treatment for certain types of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, has been earmarked for divestment in an effort to address Federal Trade Commission concerns related to the company’s $74 billion takeover by Bristol-Myers Squibb.

Read the press release