I am going to be a lab rat

[Aliantha]

As most of you may know, I suffer (yes, I do mean suffer, not live with or any other fancy pants new age term) from psoriasis. Today I went to see a new dermatologist and he's offered me the chance to participate in a new drug trial.

Here are the details:

You are being invited to participate in a research study, which is being conducted in order to find out if the investigational drug, brodalumab, is a safe and effective treatment in people with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis and whether it causes any side effects. This study will also
Protocol No.: 20120103
A Phase 3 Study to Evaluate the Efficacy and Safety of Induction and Maintenance Regimens of
Brodalumab Compared With Placebo and Ustekinumab in Subjects With Moderate to Severe Plaque
Psoriasis: AMAGINE-2
Version 3.0: 5 July 2012 Page 2 of 17
Amgen Version: 3
test what happens when you change the dose (strength) or how frequently you are taking brodalumab.
To do this, brodalumab will be compared to ustekinumab (a drug used to treat psoriasis) and to placebo. Ustekinumab is a drug which has been approved by regulatory health agencies, including the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) for the treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis.. Ustekinumab is sold in the United States, European Union and Australia under the name “Stelara”. The placebo used in this study will look like brodalumab and ustekinumab, but will not contain any active ingredients. Taking placebo is the same as not taking anything for your psoriasis. You are being asked to participate in this study because you have moderate to severe plaque psoriasis.

It's a five year trial, so if the drug works as well as the doc has said, then I will at least have 5 years of peace. Not sure what I will do after the trial. The drug will cost about $20k/yr after that. For now, it'll be free.