EHA 2024: How Effective is Elritercept for Low-Risk MDS Patients?

At the European Hematology Association (EHA) 2024 conference, MDS specialists presented phase 2 trial updates on the FDA-approved medicine elritercept, focusing on its effectiveness in reducing MDS-related anemia and iron overload. Read the key findings below.

What Is Elritercept? 

Elritercept (KER-050, Keros Therapeutics) is a medicine for low—to intermediate-risk MDS patients that helps improve anemia and iron overload. It works by limiting cell signals that cause low blood cell production, thereby increasing blood counts. The FDA recently granted Fast Track designation to elritercept for its potential to treat patients with lower-risk MDS.

How Effective Is Elritercept for Low-Risk MDS? 

The KER050-MD-201 study is still recruiting participants, but the first results in 60 low-risk MDS patients treated with elritercept over 24 weeks showed: 

• Half of the patients experienced an improvement in their blood cell counts and/or no longer needed blood cell transfusions 
• The side effects experienced by most patients were only mild-moderate cases of shortness of breath, diarrhea, fatigue, nausea, and headache. 

Another interesting finding from this study was that elritercept helped reduce the amount of stored iron. This is beneficial because excess iron in the body negatively impacts the bones’ ability to make blood cells, potentially leading to bone loss. 

Elritercept addresses this issue by promoting blood cell growth, such as red blood cells. Red blood cells use stored iron, mitigating iron overload. 

Although elritercept is FDA-approved, further data from the study will help provide more information about how this medicine affects low-risk MDS patients. If you want to review your eligibility to join the ongoing KER050-MD-201 study, click here. 

Conclusion

Early findings from the KER050-MD-201 study show that elritercept is generally safe for low-risk MDS patients. It also has the potential to improve patients’ blood cell counts, alleviate certain symptoms of anemia, and reduce iron overload. More research from this study will provide additional findings regarding elritercept’s effectiveness in myelodysplastic syndromes. 

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Sources: 

• Durable Clinical Benefit with Elritercept (KER-050) Treatment: Findings from an Ongoing Phase 2 Trial in Participants with Lower-Risk MDS
• Reduced Ferritin and Increased Bone Specific Alkaline Phosphatase in Participants with Lower-Risk MDS Treated with Elritercept (KER-050) Support Potential to Rebalance the Osteohematopoietic Niche