Turn Therapeutics at Stifel forum: itch score drives trial design

On 23 September 2026, at the Stifel 2026 Virtual Immunology and Inflammation Forum, Turn Therapeutics (TTRX) unveiled its trial strategy for atopic dermatitis, a chronic skin condition. The biotech company reported promising interim data from an adaptive study, but emphasized the importance of precise patient selection and further confirmation.

With a market valuation of $455 million, TTRX's shares have surged 288% year-to-date, currently trading at $14.24, though they remain below the 52-week high of $26.50. Analysts suggest the stock may be overvalued relative to its fair value.

Turn Therapeutics employed an adaptive, two-stage trial design to refine its patient population and enhance the drug's therapeutic impact. Interim data from 50 patients revealed that baseline itch, or pruritus, could serve as a valuable enrichment factor, particularly at a score of 7 or higher. In a subset of 25 patients with higher itch and severity scores, the drug demonstrated stronger results, including statistical significance at week 4 for vIGA and durability at week 8.

Management explained that the trial strategy aligns with FDA expectations, insurance coverage, and the anticipated market size. Stephen Hahn, head of clinical and regulatory, described the enrichment strategy as the prospective use of clinical, laboratory, or radiographic characteristics to select trial participants. Hahn noted that 87% to 88% of FDA-approved cancer drugs in the past two years utilized predictive biomarker enrichment, highlighting its potential to increase the likelihood of detecting a drug signal and reduce trial risk.

He emphasized that enrichment is guided by the biology of the disease and preliminary data from TTRX's own study.

Atopic dermatitis presents challenges due to its variable severity, which can be assessed using vIGA (a five-point scale) and EASI (Eczema Area and Severity Index). Current systemic therapies typically require an EASI score of 16 or higher, potentially excluding patients with severe but localized disease, such as hand eczema, who may not meet this threshold but still experience significant daily difficulties.

Turn Therapeutics aimed to address this gap by enriching for patients with a high itch burden, believing this approach better reflects the drug's therapeutic effect. The company completed an interim analysis of 50 patients, showing statistical significance at week 4 on vIGA and in a nested subset with a pruritus score of at least 6 and an EASI score of at least 1.1.

The most enriched subset, with a pruritus score of at least 7 and an EASI score of at least 1.1, included 25 patients, where week 4 vIGA reached statistical significance (P=0.01), and week 4 EASI-75 also showed significance.