GASTROENTEROLOGY
Advancing drug monitoring for better IBD outcomes
Current and future trends in therapeutic drug monitoring for inflammatory bowel disease management was the subject for a recent webinar hosted by our sister title, Clinical Services Journal. Graham Johnson of BIOHIT Healthcare delves into the key points discussed by experts during the session, including the use of innovative new diagnostics.
Gastrointestinal disorders are increasingly recognised as a global health challenge, with rising incidence rates and substantial implications for the general population. In fact, research conducted in 2022 revealed that over half a million people in the UK alone are living with Crohn’s disease and
ulcerative colitis – nearly double that of previous estimates.1
This equates to a
prevalence of approximately 1 in every 123 individuals, and the incidence of gastrointestinal disorders is projected to continue to rise in the coming decades.2 Fortunately, this growing disease burden is being counteracted by
significant strides in pharmacological IBD management, particularly through the development of biologic treatments like the TNF-α inhibitors infliximab (IFX) and adalimumab (ADM). Biologics and biosimilars – more affordable biotherapeutic medicines with highly similar structures, functions and efficacy to the original drugs – offer a distinct advantage over systemic small molecule anti-inflammatories, due to their direct mode of action.3,4
These therapies have
transformed IBD care by targeting and inhibiting pro-inflammatory cytokines, markedly reducing the need for surgical interventions5
since their integration
into routine clinical practice. However, the chronic and often unpredictable nature of IBD continues to pose significant challenges for both patients and healthcare providers. Responses to biotherapies vary widely, from rapid remission in some patients to no therapeutic effect in others. It is not therefore uncommon for patients to experience limited benefit from these treatments; up to 30% of IBD patients show no initial response, and as many as 46% encounter a gradual loss of response (LOR) to biotherapeutics over time.6
Common roadblocks to optimal IBD care
Biologic treatments have transformed IBD care, but responses to these novel therapies vary widely.
WWW.PATHOLOGYINPRACTICE.COM MAY 2025
Understanding how the body metabolises and eliminates anti-TNF drugs is crucial to
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