Eosinophil-reducing treatments have a favorable benefit‒risk profile when used as add-on therapy for patients with severe asthma with a dominant eosinophilic phenotype.

Concerns around potential risk of immunosuppression due to impaired eosinophil function or eosinophil depletion have been raised, primarily based on circumstantial associations and nonclinical models.

Safety data of the eosinophil-depleting therapy benralizumab include more than 1600 patients with severe asthma, approximately 1000 of whom received benralizumab continuously for up to 2 years, and for approximately 2700 patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease treated for up to 1 year.

Benralizumab was generally well-tolerated by patients, with no apparent association between treatment and increased risks of infections or malignancies.