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News
A JAK inhibitor gets a boost. New phase 3 data show upadacitinib (Rinvoq) continues to drive repigmentation in nonsegmental vitiligo patients out to 76 weeks — and adding UVB phototherapy boosts results even further. The drug is already approved in Europe and under FDA review for this indication.
A JAK inhibitor gets a boost
New data from two ongoing pivotal phase 3 trials (Viti-Up-1 and -2), presented at the EADV 2026 Congress in Vienna, show that upadacitinib (Rinvoq, AbbVie) continues to deliver meaningful repigmentation in patients with nonsegmental vitiligo (NSV) out to 76 weeks — with no new safety signals. Combining the once-daily JAK inhibitor with narrow-band UVB phototherapy provided an additional efficacy boost over monotherapy alone.
The combined trials enrolled 614 patients (adolescents and adults), and both primary endpoints — ≥50% reduction in total body vitiligo score (T-VASI 50) and ≥75% reduction in facial vitiligo score (F-VASI 75) at 48 weeks — were met. A 28-week phototherapy substudy found that 63% of combination-therapy patients achieved T-VASI 50, compared to lower rates in the monotherapy group.
By the Numbers
Why it matters: Vitiligo has long lacked effective systemic treatments. With upadacitinib already approved in Europe and under FDA review, these long-term data — especially the phototherapy synergy — could reshape treatment strategies, though access to UVB devices remains a real-world hurdle for many patients.
