Many people weren’t aware of alopecia before the controversial Oscars ceremony of 2022, but this autoimmune disease that affects actress Jada Pinkett Smith is one that also affects nearly 7 million Americans and about 147 million people around the world. And as of this summer, there may be some relief in sight, thanks to approval by the Food and Drug Administration of a new drug to treat it.
Alopecia entails an immune system response that attacks hair follicles, causing hair to stop growing. In most cases, a person with alopecia loses hair in patches, although there are some rare cases where a person can lose all hair on their scalp or even all hair on their entire body. Most people with alopecia are otherwise healthy and see no other symptoms, although the bad patches can severely affect their confidence, particularly for those who have bouts of hair loss throughout their entire life. Some people have only one or two bouts of alopecia and their hair grows back normally. It’s not clear whether alopecia is a genetic condition or whether it is affected by environmental factors.
Until recently, there was no treatment for alopecia. That changed in June 2022, when the FDA approved a drug called Oluminant, made by the pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly, marking it as safe and effective for people with this condition. (Oluminant was already an approved treatment option for people with other autoimmune conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis.) With public awareness of alopecia growing, other pharmaceutical companies—Concert Pharmaceuticals and Pfizer among them—are following Eli Lilly’s lead to develop similar medicines.
