- Patients with eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) suffer from severe symptoms including swallowing disorders, food impaction, vomiting, and heartburn
- EsoCap is currently conducting a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind Phase II trial to treat 42 patients in four European countries with its lead candidate ESO-101
- To help raise awareness of the medical condition, EsoCap supports EUREOS and its activities
BASEL, Switzerland, May 20, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- EsoCap AG, the Swiss biotech company dedicated to improving the lives of patients with serious diseases of the upper gastrointestinal tract, is supporting the first European EoE day to be launched on 22 May 2022 initiated by EUREOS (European Society of Eosinophilic Oesophagitis) and AEDESEO, the Spanish association of EoE patients. The campaign is the first of its kind in Europe and highlights the need for more public information about eosinophilic esophagitis in general and more specifically, about EoE diagnosis and treatment pathways. The increased public awareness will improve early detection rates through more screening and better diagnosis, both crucial for tackling EoE, as early intervention is key to improved treatment outcomes. Currently, treatment options are limited and awareness of ongoing research and development in academia and industry is essential. The development of novel and improved treatment options for patients is EsoCap’s mission and its lead candidate ESO-101 has the potential to provide significant clinical benefits to EoE patients.
“Eosinophilic esophagitis is a rare and chronic disease with very limited treatment options. Esocap supports the first EoE awareness campaign for this debilitating disease. We provide posters and brochures on our ongoing trial and support the EUREOS program. Join us on social media and raise awareness for EoE in Europe and beyond,” said Isabelle Racamier, EsoCap AG CEO. “We continue to drive our ongoing clinical trial forward to develop long-lasting targeted topical delivery of mometasone furoate as a new treatment option.”
EsoCap AG is currently conducting the phase II ACESO trial in EoE. The randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial is evaluating the efficacy, tolerability and safety of ESO-101 in 42 adult patients with active eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE), in four European countries. Patients are randomized 2:1 and treated for 28 days.
EsoCap’s novel targeted application platform is designed to increase mucosal contact time and esophageal drug deposition. The first product candidate, ESO-101, is loaded with mometasone furoate, an anti-inflammatory corticosteroid and well-known active substance approved as a topical treatment for asthma and skin conditions and is thus well suited as a locoregional treatment for EoE. Upon drinking the capsule from a specially designed drinking cup, the film unrolls and sticks to the patient’s esophageal mucosa, where it dissolves slowly while releasing mometasone furoate.
About eosinophilic esophagitis
Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE), is a rare, chronic, local immune-mediated esophageal disease, characterized clinically by symptoms related to esophageal dysfunction, and histologically by eosinophil-predominant inflammation. The symptoms of EoE include swallowing disorders, food impaction, vomiting, and heartburn. EoE is the leading cause of dysphagia and food impaction in children and young adults.
The only treatment options for the condition are extremely strict diets, off-label treatment with steroids, or off-label proton pump inhibitors, or an orodispersible budesonide tablet available only in limited territories. These treatment options remain suboptimal for the vast majority of affected patients. Currently, about half a million patients worldwide suffer from this disease. The prevalence of EoE is about 5 in 10,000. The current incidence is estimated at about 5 cases per 100,000. The incidence of EoE increases with age and peaks at 30-50 years.
About EsoCap
EsoCap AG is a privately funded company based in Basel, Switzerland.
EsoCap’s vision is to improve the lives of patients with serious diseases of the upper gastrointestinal tract through development of a unique and innovative topical drug delivery platform.
Effective topical treatment of the esophagus is extremely difficult to achieve with the current standard of care, due to the ultra-short drug contact time of one to two seconds from the mouth to the stomach. Lead candidate ESO-101 has received Orphan Drug Designation from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of EoE and is in clinical development for this indication.
EsoCap has developed a unique, proprietary drug delivery platform allowing the efficient topical application of drug substances for the local treatment of diseases of the upper gastrointestinal tract. EsoCap has a strong and broad intellectual property position.
For more information, please visit www.esocapbiotech.com and follow EsoCap on LinkedIn and Twitter.
Contacts:
Isabelle Racamier, CEO
EsoCap AG
Malzgasse 9
4052 Basel
Switzerland
isabelle.racamier@esocapbiotech.com
Media Inquiries:
MC Services AG
Katja Arnold, Andreas Jungfer
Phone: +49 89 210288-0
esocap@mc-services.eu
