Bimekizumab Demonstrates Long-Term Benefit for Arthritis Post-Approval, with Philip Mease, MD

Bimekizumab has demonstrated sustained improvements in disease control and symptoms for up to 3 years in people with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and active axial spondyloarthritis.1,2,3,4

These findings were presented in a several posters at the European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) Congress 2025 in Barcelona, Spain, which was held from June 11-14, 2025.

HCPLive spoke with Philip Mease, MD, director of rheumatology research at Providence Swedish Medical Center and clinical professor at the University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, who served as an investigator on the studies of bimekizumab, to learn more about the new data presented and how it showcases the therapy’s benefits for both people with PsA and AxSpA.

Mease went over some highlights from the BE OPTIMAL and BE COMPLETE studies in people with PsA and the MOBILE-1 and MOBILE-2 studies in people with AxSpA. He emphasized the sustained efficacy seen across the 3 years in both populations, especially in minimal disease activity (MDA), which he considered to be of particular value as an end point. Furthermore, he went over the favorable safety profile seen with bimekizumab, which has some risk of adverse events (AEs), but which yielded low rates of AEs across the follow-up.

“MDA achievement was 53% at 3 years. This is really the highest number that I've seen for this important composite measure that's a target of treatment and so I thought that was a not only meaningful in terms of the height of response, but also the fact that it was still being maintained out at 3 years,” Mease said.

Bimekizumab was approved by the FDA for treating adults with active PsA, active non-radiographic AxSpA, and active ankylosing spondylitis in adults in September 2024.5

Mease's disclosures include AbbVie, Amgen, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol Myers Squibb, Celgene, Eli Lilly, Galapagos, Gilead Sciences, Genentech, Janssen, Novartis, Pfizer Inc, Sun and UCB.

REFERENCES

1. Gossec L, Coates L, McInnes I, et al. Bimekizumab, a dual inhibitor of IL-17A and IL 17F, demonstrated long-term safety and efficacy biologic DMARD naïve patients with active psoriatic arthritis: final 3-year results from the Phase 3 BE OPTIMAL study and its open label extension [abstract Presented at: EULAR Congress 2025; Barcelona, Spain; June 11-14. Poster #POS1294.

2. McInnes I, Merola J, Coates L, et al. Dual inhibition of IL-17A and IL-17F with bimekizumab demonstrated long-term safety and efficacy in patients with active psoriatic arthritis and prior inadequate response to tumor necrosis factor inhibitors: final 3-year results from the Phase 3 BE COMPLETE study and its open-label extension [abstract]. Presented at: EULAR Congress 2025; Barcelona, Spain; June 11-14. Poster #POS0105.

3. Baraliakos X, Deodhar A, van der Heijde D, et al. Bimekizumab demonstrated sustained efficacy and safety across the full spectrum of axial spondyloarthritis: 3-year results from two Phase 3 studies and their open-label extension [abstract]. Presented at: EULAR Congress 2025; Barcelona, Spain; June 11-14. Poster #POS0788.

4. Navarro-Compán V, Kiltz U, Mease P, et al. Sustained improvements with bimekizumab in pain, morning stiffness, fatigue, physical function and health-related quality of life in patients with axial spondyloarthritis: 3-year results from two Phase 3 studies [abstract]. Presented at: EULAR Congress 2025; Barcelona, Spain; June 11-14. Poster #POS0921.

5. UCB Announces U.S. FDA Approvals for BIMZELX® (bimekizumab-bkzx) for the Treatment of Psoriatic Arthritis, Non-Radiographic Axial Spondyloarthritis, and Ankylosing Spondylitis. News release. UCB. September 23, 2024.