Improvement in mucosal discoid lupus erythematosus with anifrolumab

Abstract

Anifrolumab is a fully humanized monoclonal antibody targeting the type I interferon receptor and recently approved for the treatment of moderate-to-severe systemic lupus erythematosus. In addition to ameliorating systemic lupus activity, anifrolumab has emerged as a promising therapeutic option for patients with refractory cutaneous discoid lupus erythematosus (DLE), but its effect on mucosal DLE has yet to be investigated. In a prospective study of seven patients with severe mucosal DLE treated with anifrolumab, we observed substantial improvement in mucosal disease activity within 1 month of anifrolumab initiation, suggesting that the impressive benefit of anifrolumab previously reported in cutaneous DLE extends to mucosal involvement.