Back pain drug now available in UK

People with a type of inflammatory back pain now have access to a new biological therapy option called certolizumab pegol (Cimzia).

The drug is injected and is offered free to eligible adults with pre-radiographic ankylosing spondylitis, or axial spondyloarthritis for 12 weeks.

Axial spondyloarthritis affects about 1% of people in the UK and can cause severe back pain, damage to the pelvis, inflammation of tendons and ligaments and sore red eyes. Some people later develop ankylosing spondylitis.

Early identification of axial spondyloarthritis can prevent irreversible damage from developing.

The new drug belongs to a class of medicines called anti-TNF therapies which were pioneered by Arthritis Research UK.

“For years, early diagnosis of axial spondyloarthritis has proved challenging, with no effective treatments,” says Dr Stefan Siebert from the University of Glasgow. “However, with advances in imaging technology, better diagnostic criteria and new treatments, we now have the opportunity to improve patients’ symptoms and avert long-term disability.”