An Open-Label Pilot Clinical Trial of the JAK Inhibitor Tofacitinib for Alopecia Areata

In a 2016 open-label pilot clinical trial by Columbia University, 12 patients with moderate to severe alopecia areata were treated with the JAK inhibitor tofacitinib. Eleven patients completed the trial, and after increasing the dose from 5mg to 10mg twice daily, 8 patients experienced at least 50% improvement in their condition. The study also correlated skin gene expression profiles and the Alopecia Areata Disease Activity Index with clinical responses, supporting previous findings with ruxolitinib, another JAK inhibitor. The trial reported minimal adverse events and suggested that JAK inhibitors could be promising for larger clinical trials in alopecia areata treatment.