PrismRA enables precision medicine, supports better outcomes, and reduces ineffective utilization of TNFi therapy for rheumatoid arthritis treatment 

WALTHAM, Mass. (December 6, 2021) – Scipher Medicine, a precision immunology company matching patients with their most effective therapy, today announced that nearly 15 percent of prescribing U.S. rheumatologists have used PrismRA since its launch a year ago, resulting in lowered healthcare costs and improved patient outcomes. PrismRA is the only blood test in the market informing personalized treatment decisions for patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). 

Even though there are five commonly prescribed classes of targeted therapy, an estimated 90% of RA patients are prescribed tumor necrosis factor inhibitor (TNFi) therapies, the world’s largest selling drug class. Unfortunately, nearly two-thirds of patients taking such drugs do not respond clinically to TNFi therapy, resulting in accelerated disease progression and bone erosion and increased use of pain medication to manage symptoms. PrismRA identifies patients unlikely to respond to TNFi drugs, enabling non-responders to be prescribed alternative FDA-approved therapy from day one that could significantly improve clinical outcomes. 

“PrismRA helps match patients with rheumatoid arthritis to medications that work for them – and more quickly,” said Dr. Dianne Cooper, MD, a rheumatology specialist from Wichita Falls, Texas, who has prescribed PrismRA. “The availability of this blood test is significant because the current wait-and-see approach to therapy selection often results in negative impacts to patients’ quality of life and inefficient use of precious health care resources. PrismRA provides physicians with evidence-based guidance and is a significant medical advancement.” 

More than $552 billion is wasted annually across the healthcare system when patients are prescribed drugs they don’t respond to, and the largest contributor is autoimmune diseases such as RA.  

“Rheumatologists, their patients, and healthcare stakeholders are responding very positively to PrismRA,” said Sam Asgarian, M.D., chief medical officer of Scipher Medicine. “Accurate therapy selection significantly improves patient outcomes, and we are encouraged by the progress we are making with our proprietary blood test to support rheumatoid arthritis patients and their physicians.”  

Molecular data generated from PrismRA further fuels the development of Scipher Medicine’s test pipeline targeting autoimmune diseases with low drug response rates, including ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, and multiple sclerosis. In addition to developing tests that predict which existing and approved drug a patient will respond to, our Spectra™ platform also enables partnerships with pharmaceutical companies to develop new drugs targeting specific patient populations with high response rates  

RA is an autoimmune and inflammatory disease, which means a person’s immune system attacks healthy cells, causing painful swelling in the affected parts of the body, usually joints in the hands, wrists, and knees. There is no cure for RA, making early condition management critical to patient care. About 1.5 million Americans have RA, and women are two times more likely than men to get RA, according to the Arthritis Foundation. 

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About PrismRA^® 

PrismRA is a revolutionary blood test bringing precision medicine to the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, which affects 20 million patients globally. From a routine blood draw, the PrismRA test analyzes an individual’s molecular signature, helping identify who is unlikely to adequately respond to TNFi therapy, the world’s largest selling drug class, so non-responders can be prescribed alternative effective therapy and avoid unnecessary dose escalations or drug cycles. Providers now have objective data to guide therapeutic decision-making and give patients the best chance of achieving treatment targets and improving clinical outcomes. For more information, please visit www.PrismRA.com. 

About Scipher Medicine^®  

Scipher Medicine, a precision immunology company matching patients with their most effective therapy, believes that patients deserve simple answers to treatment options based on scientific data. Using Spectra™, our proprietary network medicine platform, we commercialize tests revealing a person’s unique molecular disease signature and match it to the most effective therapy, ensuring optimal treatment from day one. The patient molecular data generated from our tests further supports the discovery and development of novel and more effective therapeutics. We partner with leading payers, health care providers, and pharmaceutical companies to bring solutions to patients with autoimmune diseases. Visit http://www.sciphermedicine.com and follow Scipher Medicine on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.   

Media Contact 

Matt Burns  
VP, Head of Communications 
PR@Scipher.com 
518-423-5907 

Investor Contact 

John Strumbos, Ph.D., MBA 
Chief Financial Officer  
IR@scipher.com