Leo Pharma has decided “It’s GO time” for the launch of its JAK inhibitor cream Anzupgo. Having built its growth plans on the recently approved medicine, the Danish drugmaker is running a direct-to-consumer (DTC) campaign, including an ad on streaming services.
The FDA approved Anzupgo for moderate to severe chronic hand eczema (CHE) in July, making the drug the first product approved for adults with the skin disease in the U.S.
Leo grew its U.S. sales force by more than 50% after winning approval, putting feet on the ground to support a September launch. The company has identified Anzupgo as a driver of the 8% to 11% revenue growth it is targeting this year.
Leo’s marketing team is rolling out the multichannel “It’s GO time” DTC campaign to support the launch. The campaign, which started Thursday and will continue throughout the year, includes a one-minute ad Leo is running on streaming services such as Hulu, Disney+, Peacock, Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. Leo is also targeting patients online and in dermatologists' waiting rooms nationwide.
The ad starts with close-up shots of people scratching and rubbing their hands as a voiceover says, “The itching? Uncomfortable. The pain? Uncomfortable.” As the screen spins to show people performing tasks that use their hands, the voiceover says, “Now it’s time to go, with Anzupgo.” The next scenes show people rubbing the Anzupgo cream into their skin and performing tasks with their hands with ease.
As the chef, pianist, artist and fisherman in the ad show, we rely on our hands for nearly everything we do professionally and personally. Yet, according to Leo, CHE is often overlooked or misunderstood. The ad is designed to raise awareness that dry, itchy, painful hands could be symptoms of CHE and to encourage people to talk to their doctors about their condition and Anzupgo.
Other CHE treatment approaches include topical steroids and atopic dermatitis drugs used off-label. Robert Spurr, executive vice president for North America at Leo, said in a statement that many patients “struggle with cycling through topical steroids that are not working.”