What is the vitiligo skin cream treatment? What are its side effects?
Controversial vitiligo ‘miracle cream’ could soon be offered on NHS in motion that could be the ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ for thousands of patients
- Ruxolitinib, brand name Opzelura, is a medication used to treat skin condition vitiligo
- With vitiligo, white spots appear on the skin due to a lack of pigment
A controversial ‘wonder cream’ used to treat the skin pigmentation disease vitiligo could soon be offered on the NHS.
Vitiligo is an autoimmune disease of the skin caused by a lack of melanin and results in white patches on areas such as the face and fingers.
Ruxolitinib has been hailed by some as a miracle cream as it can return skin to its natural color and could be ‘the light at the end of the tunnel’ for patients.
It could now be offered on the NHS if the UK’s drug regulator MHRA approves it to be sold or prescribed.
But ruxolitinib, brand name Opzelura, is considered controversial because of its potential serious side effects, such as cancer and blood clots.
A controversial ‘miracle cream’ used to treat the skin pigmentation disease vitiligo could soon be offered on the NHS
Ruxolitinib has been hailed by some as a wonder cream as it can return skin to its natural color and could be ‘the light at the end of the tunnel’ for patients
The drug has an FDA black box warning on its packaging stating that it can also cause serious infections, immune system problems, low blood cell counts, and elevated cholesterol.
Opzelura should be prescribed by doctors, rather than being sold without a prescription, because the treatment has to check my medics.
The National Institute for Care and Health Excellence plans to assess the risks and benefits of the drug, to determine whether the cost of providing it to NHS patients could be justified.
European regulators could also be set to recommend it to people aged 12 and over.
It’s also expensive, as in the US, where it’s already approved for use, a single tube costs $2,000 (£1,600).
Teacher Joti Gata-Aura, who is Indian, has lived with the condition for 20 years.
She told the BBC that because of her vitiligo her “identity was stripped” and that she was constantly seeking treatments.
“People are going through what I went through 20 years ago,” she said. “This could be light at the end of the tunnel for many people.”
Vitiligo is caused by the person’s own body attacking melanin-producing cells in the skin, mistaking them for foreign invaders.
The disease affects about one in 100 people in the UK and about one in 200 in the US.
About 50 percent develop the first symptoms before the age of 20, although it’s not clear why.
But according to the NHS, ‘stressful’ events such as childbirth, exposure to certain chemicals or even cuts can cause it – there’s also a genetic risk.
Model Winnie Harlow, who started developing vitiligo when she was about four years old, told Cosmopolitan last year that it was “incredibly isolating as a kid.”
There is no cure, but some treatments can reverse pigment loss if used early enough.
Model Winnie Harlow, who started developing vitiligo when she was about four years old, told Cosmopolitan last year that it was “incredibly isolating as a kid.”
“I vividly remember being in third grade trying to befriend two girls who ran away from me because their mothers didn’t want them to ‘catch’ what I had, like I was contagious,” she said.
However, she said she thanks her loving family for her confidence and feels her skin has been one of her “greatest gifts.”