Professor Ulf Landmesser from Charite – Universitatsmedizin Berlin, Germany, speaks to Cardio Debate & Radcliffe Cardiology about PCSK9 antagonists and if there’s a real breakthrough for management of familial hypercholesterolaemia, during the ESC2016 Congress held in Rome, Italy.

TRANSCRIPT

PCSK9s: Are they are real breakthrough and why?
PSCK9 inhibitors are indeed a major new treatment option we have for the treatment of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

They are a breakthrough in the sense that they are the most effective approach we have today to lower LDL cholesterol, and our recent analysis has suggested that LDL-cholesterol is causative for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease – and therefore we expect the ongoing outcome trials to demonstrate that there will be a significant reduction of the burden of cardiovascular disease using this novel approach.

Are there any potential risks that need to be researched?
This is an important question, and has to be carefully looked into. So far as the safety of the antibody approach seems to be very good, there are now also studies that will look more carefully at the neurocognitive side of the treatment, whether there are any effects on neurocognitive function. I think that this is the major issue that is looked into now.

But as far as I now, the data look very promising.

Have there been any major breakthroughs on CV prevention presented at ESC2016?
We are waiting for imaging studies on PCSK9 that will be presented at the AHA meeting. There are also -besides the antibody therapy- now molecular approaches using sRNA for PSCK9 – however this data will be presented at the next AHA meeting. Probably the outcome trial data will be presented at the next ACC meeting.

So for now at the ESC meeting some of the important trials that we are waiting on are not yet presented, so we wait for them at the next meeting.