Why carry out this study?

Racial disparities in disease severity, clinical outcomes, and treatment survival have been reported in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA); however, there remains a paucity of data on racial differences in response to advanced RA therapies, particularly Janus kinase inhibitors.

This post hoc analysis assessed the efficacy and safety of tofacitinib across racial groups using pooled data from the tofacitinib global clinical program.

What was learned from the study?

The efficacy and safety of tofacitinib across racial groups were consistent with previous findings from the tofacitinib RA clinical program.

Differences in clinical outcomes across racial groups may be attributable to differences in regional patient demography and clinical management of RA, or geographical differences in risk for safety outcomes.

These data provide insight into observed treatment response across patient backgrounds and reinforce the importance of the inclusion of patients with diverse racial/ethnic backgrounds into clinical trials of advanced therapies for RA.