October 30, 2003

Drug may block Crohn’s symptoms

By Elizabeth Crown

Alan Buchman

An investigational drug under study by Alan Buchman, M.D., of Northwestern may block the intense abdominal pain, diarrhea, bleeding and other symptoms of Crohn’s disease, a condition of unknown cause that affects up to 1 million Americans.

After receiving the experimental drug, called CNI-1493, Lynn Rogers, who has Crohn’s disease, experienced a complete remission of her disabling symptoms for over eight months.

Rogers, 40, a third-grade teacher in Corpus Christi, Texas, and one of the first people in the United States to receive the drug, was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease in 1997.

None of the standard treatments for Crohn’s disease Rogers received, including corticosteroids, imfliximab (Remicade®) and medications that suppress the immune system — which normally are used for transplant patients — was effective.

Buchman, an associate professor of medicine, is conducting a new study of CNI-1493, but only Crohn’s disease patients who have never received the drug are eligible to participate.