What the trial was testing
The CONTROL enrolled 246 patients with psoriasis. The study was sponsored by AbbVie and tracked outcomes across the full group of patients who matched the trial's eligibility profile.
It was long-term safety (phase 4). Trials at this stage are designed to produce evidence regulators and physicians can act on — not just observations to follow up later.
What the results showed
41% of patients reached minimal disease activity with the combination therapy vs. 13% with higher methotrexate alone.
The Lancet. Rheumatology · 2022 · NCT02814175
These findings — that patients who added a biologic did three times better than those who just raised their methotrexate dose — were published in the The Lancet. Rheumatology and represent the headline result of the study.
Researchers tracked outcomes across 246 patients enrolled in the trial. The result was consistent enough across the group that the team felt confident reporting it.
What this means for patients
For patients with psoriasis, this result changes the calculus on what to ask their care team about. Whether it changes day-to-day care depends on factors like disease subtype, prior treatments, and where the patient is in their care journey.
What you can do now
If you have psoriatic arthritis and methotrexate alone isn't controlling your symptoms, this study suggests adding a biologic injection works better than just raising the methotrexate dose. Adalimumab is FDA-approved for psoriatic arthritis. Talk to your rheumatologist about whether adding a biologic makes sense for you.
Eligibility for the treatments mentioned above depends on specific test results and clinical history. Bring this summary, the trial name, and your most recent labs or pathology report to your next visit.
Open psoriasis trials
Open Label Study to Investigate the Safety and Efficacy of Ponesimod in Moderate-to-Severe Chronic Plaque Psoriasis
An open label study to investigate the safety and efficacy of ponesimod in participants with moderate-to-severe chronic plaque psoriasis
Evaluate the Safety and Pharmacokinetics/Pharmacodynamics of HS-20118
The study will be conducted in 2 parts (SAD for Part 1 and MAD for Part2). Part 1 is a single-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, SAD study to evaluate the safety, tolerability, immunogenicity, and PK of HS-20118 after a single oral dose in healthy participants. Part 2 is a multi-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, MAD study to evaluate the safety, tolerability, immunogenicity, PK, and PD of HS-20118 after multiple oral doses in patients with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis .