The HCPFive: Top News for Healthcare Providers from the Week of 05/03

Welcome to The HCPFive, your go-to roundup for the latest healthcare news and breakthroughs, curated specifically for busy healthcare professionals.

Each week, we highlight 5 key developments or headlines from healthcare that you need to know — whether it's a cutting-edge treatment, regulatory updates, or innovations shaping the future of medicine. This week's top stories spotlight data from Digestive Disease Week (DDW) 2026, including 4-year LUCENT-3 extension results showing durable disease clearance with mirikizumab in ulcerative colitis and phase 3 FUZION data establishing guselkumab as the first biologic to demonstrate efficacy in perianal fistulizing Crohn's disease in 2 decades, We also highlight new data on abrocitinib, a deep dive into the patient education gap in hypertension risk detection and management, and a Skin of Color Savvy discussion with Noreen Galaria, MD, on misinformation, holistic dermatology, and caring for patients with skin of color.

With The HCPFive, you'll get the essential takeaways to stay informed and ahead of the curve. Here's your quick dive into the top stories for the week of May 3, 2026 — let's jump in!

Abrocitinib Therapy Effective in Patients With Atopic Dermatitis at 2 Years

An interim analysis of the phase 3 JADE EXTEND long-term extension trial found that dose-dependent clinician-reported efficacy measures continued to improve through 2 years of oral abrocitinib use in adolescent and adult patients with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis who had previously completed qualifying trials. Patient-reported outcomes — including itch reduction and quality of life measures — complemented the clinical findings, with investigators noting that a substantial proportion of patients achieved high-threshold endpoints and minimal disease activity at 2 years.

Mirikizumab Maintains Disease Clearance in UC Through 4 Years in LUCENT-3 Extension

Final data from the LUCENT-3 open-label extension study, presented at DDW 2026, showed that 63.5% of patients with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis who achieved disease clearance — a composite requiring simultaneous symptomatic, endoscopic, and histologic remission — at 1 year maintained it through 4 years of continuous mirikizumab treatment on an observed-cases basis. The findings mark the first demonstration of durable disease clearance at 4 years for any IL-23p19 inhibitor in UC, and Lilly reported that during the 3-year extension period only 1 UC-related hospitalization and 0 UC-related surgeries occurred among treated patients.

Guselkumab Shows Efficacy in Perianal Fistulizing Crohn's Disease in Phase 3 FUZION Trial

Presented as late-breaking data at DDW 2026, the phase 3 FUZION trial found that guselkumab (Tremfya; Johnson & Johnson) achieved combined fistula remission — defined as complete external closure of all draining fistulas with no underlying fluid collection on MRI — in approximately 28% of patients with active perianal fistulizing Crohn's disease at week 24 versus just over 10% on placebo, a treatment difference exceeding 15 percentage points. The result represents the first randomized controlled trial of an approved IBD therapy to demonstrate efficacy in perianal fistulizing Crohn's disease in approximately 20 years, addressing a longstanding evidence gap in one of the most disabling manifestations of the disease.

Filling the Gaps: Educating Patients in Hypertension Risk, Detection, and Management

Despite the availability of effective antihypertensive therapies, only 2 in 3 US adults with hypertension receive treatment — a rate that has not improved from 2009–2010 to 2021–2023 — and among those treated, roughly 4 in 5 remain above the guideline-directed blood pressure goal of <130/80 mmHg. Evidence reviewed in this piece suggests targeted patient education interventions, including tailored messaging from kiosk-based screening programs and home blood pressure monitoring, are associated with improved adherence, lower mean systolic blood pressure, and higher rates of control, pointing to patient education as an underutilized lever in narrowing the treatment-to-control gap.

Skin of Color Savvy: Misinformation, Holistic Dermatology, and Skin of Color, With Noreen Galaria, MD

In this episode of the Skin of Color Savvy podcast, produced in partnership with the Skin of Color Society, Noreen Galaria, MD, discussed the growing challenge of social media–driven misinformation in dermatology, the integration of nutraceuticals and antioxidant-based strategies into conventional skin care, and the clinical importance of ensuring adequate representation in dermatologic training and practice. Galaria also addressed physician wellness, emphasizing sustainable self-care practices and the value of interdisciplinary collaboration — including dermatologists' role in identifying systemic disease — as part of a broader shift toward holistic, patient-centered dermatologic care.