Biologic arthritis drugs come with a high cost burden, while a new drug for psoriatic arthritis shows promise.

Living with arthritis means coming to understand a whole new language of symptoms, treatments and research. A great way to pick up the local dialect quickly is to keep an eye on arthritis news and research. Today, we're focusing on arthritis drugs - both the promise of new ones and the cost of certain medications to seniors who require them to manage rheumatoid arthritis and related chronic illnesses. As ever, if you read research that raises questions about your own symptoms and treatments, discuss it with your doctor.

Psoriatic arthritis drug from Eli Lilly passes Phase III trials

An autoimmune drug from pharmaceuticals company Eli Lilly recently passed a Phase III trial that looked at its impact on psoriatic arthritis symptoms. The next step from this stage is an application for FDA approval and entry into the marketplace. There is another such trial occurring now that began in December, and the company will keep following up with the drug's impact on study participants for another three years.

The drug in question is called ixekizumab, and it blocks a cytokine that promotes inflammation, according to the website FierceBiotech. In the trial, both groups that received ixekizumab experienced great improvement in their arthritis symptoms after 24 weeks, and side effects were mostly common cold symptoms or reactions at the injection site.

"Psoriatic arthritis is a debilitating disease associated with progressive joint damage and skin involvement, and also has a significant impact on a person's quality of life," Dr. J. Anthony Ware, senior vice president of Lilly Bio-Medicines Product Development, said in a press release. "These results strengthen our belief that ixekizumab may have the potential to help people confronting this challenging disease."

This drug is immensely promising for people living with psoriatic arthritis who have been unable to find relief through other means, and these trials are gaining attention from doctors and patients alike.

Cost of biologics for seniors remarkably high

People living with rheumatoid arthritis and similar diseases are often treated with biologic disease modifying drugs (DMARDs), which come with a high price. This cost can be a budget-breaker for many seniors on Medicare, as starting a new biologic typically costs them more than $2,700 in copayments each year, according to a new study published in Arthritis & Rheumatology. Before catastrophic coverage kicks in, patients on Medicare are expected to pay 29.6 percent of the total cost of biologic drugs out of pocket, according to the website MedicalXpress.

"While specialty DMARDs have improved the lives of those with chronic diseases like RA, many patients face a growing and unacceptable financial burden for access to treatment," Dr. Jinoos Yazdany, lead author of the study, said in a press release. "Rather than determining which drug is best for the patient, we find ourselves making treatment decisions based on whether patients can afford drugs."

The study authors suggested health care reform continue to work to reduce overall costs, and to focus in particular on decreasing out-of-pocket expenses for patients, many of whom cannot afford the medications that would be best for them.

For more on arthritis treatments:

5 Main Treatments for Psoriatic Arthritis
Stop Getting Unnecessary Medical Treatments
What is the Best Treatment for Knee Arthritis Pain?