According to WHO, in 2019 there were 262 million asthma sufferers worldwide, with the disease contributing to 455,000 deaths in that year, especially in lower-middle income countries. As a result, with the increase of urbanisation and air pollution across the globe, there is an ever-increasing need for the development of accessible and affordable asthma (and asthma exacerbation) treatments.
Ahead of exciting updates likely to be released at the European Respiratory Society 2025 meeting, CREATION.co has investigated how the landscape of the online HCP asthma space has shaped up over the last year.
Since September 2024, CREATION.co tracked over 16,000 social media posts from healthcare professionals (HCPs) relating to asthma and asthma treatments. These posts came from around 5,500 verified HCPs from around the globe.
Medical congresses continue to be a principal driver of HCP discussions
There were several spikes in the HCP online conversation in the last year, driven by a number of issues. Notably, medical congresses emerged as a key time for data sharing and discussion. This is a trend seen across multiple therapy areas. In September 2024, the European Respiratory Society (ERS) annual meeting drove the largest spike in HCP dialogue. Behind this spike were HCPs sharing novel data releases in real time, and others creating widely-shared educational threads about their asthma research which was being presented.
Rilazbrutinib lead to a very large reduction in asthma symptoms even before removing LABA in severe asthma, T2 independent mechanism in phase 2 #ers2024 pic.twitter.com/MYrIoFRwjb
— Peter Wark (@PeterWark1710) September 9, 2024
The next largest spike also occurred over a congress – this time at the British Thoracic Society’s (BTS’s) winter meeting in November 2024. Alongside novel research and data being shared, similar to ERS, HCPs sharing UK asthma guidelines was also a large part of this conversation. Said guidelines, released by the BTS in collaboration with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN), were well-received by HCPs, and generated significant online chatter; CREATION.co identified nearly 150 HCPs sharing the guideline update over two days.
New @BTSrespiratory @NICEComms guidelines on diagnosis and management of asthma published this week. Contains important info on carbon footprint of inhalers.https://t.co/9RO8A0yGMk#BTSWinter2024 pic.twitter.com/qrJqIAvisE
— LungSpecialist (@LungConsultant) November 28, 2024
Leading up to the end of 2025, HCP conversation peaked again when looking ahead to the 2025 ERS meeting, due to take place in Amsterdam from 27th September – 1st October.
What are HCPs saying about new and upcoming asthma treatments?
HCPs mentioned a selection of asthma treatments across the timeline analysed. These ranged from traditional inhaler brands to experimental monoclonal antibodies. As seen in the chart above, one drug which was mentioned particularly frequently was Astrazeneca’s Fanesra (benralizumab).
Fanesra received positive results throughout the time period analysed for this article, including data releases at the aforementioned ERS and BTSWinter congresses. The most notable study was the phase 2 ABRA trial, which looked at benralizumab as a treatment for exacerbations of COPD and asthma. The results of this trial were received overwhelmingly positively by online HCPs. When sharing the results with their network, or engaging with online discussions, they used language such as “a breakthrough” and “game-changing” to describe the new findings.
1st new treatment for Asthma in 50 years!#Benralizumab, a monoclonal antibody given during acute asthma is more effective than current treatment of steroids, reducing the need for further treatment by 30%. This could be "game-changing" for millions of people w/ asthma! 1/. pic.twitter.com/ozK2rhExHg
— Vipin M. Vashishtha (@vipintukur) November 28, 2024
Other Astrazeneca asthma treatments were also mentioned by HCPs: Tezspire (tezepelumab, developed in partnership with Amgen) and Airsupra (albuterol/budesonide combination) received significant HCP discussion. HCPs were positive about the impact of both these drugs, stating that tezepelumab is “transforming how we treat severe asthma”, and sharing new data which showed that Airsupra has the ability to reduce severe exacerbations in mild asthma.
🔥🔥 #Tezepelumab for #Severe #Asthma: A New Era of Personalized Treatment 🌬️
Tezepelumab is transforming how we treat severe asthma by targeting epithelial barrier dysfunction. Here are the key insights about this groundbreaking treatment:
🔬 Epithelial Barrier Dysfunction:… pic.twitter.com/JsWuavkk9O
— Alfredo Pachas (@AlfredoPachasMD) October 16, 2024
While it’s clear that Astrazeneca is one of the leaders in the fight against asthma, it’s worth noting the positive reactions HCPs displayed towards GSK’s depemokimab, albeit across fewer posts. While still in development, HCPs shared depemokimab studies posted by NEJM nearly 70 times since September 2024, indicating that they are readily anticipating approval. These shares included Plain Language Summaries and a Quick Take video. The drug is currently under approval review in multiple markets.
Depemokimab, an ultra-long-acting biologic agent with enhanced binding affinity for interleukin-5, may improve outcomes in patients with asthma with an eosinophilic phenotype. Research findings are summarized in a new Quick Take video. https://t.co/oUrChpEeDy pic.twitter.com/BIAIbTVxBe
— NEJM (@NEJM) December 29, 2024
This all shows the predictive impact of HCP social media listening. It’s clearly an interesting time to be an HCP treating asthma patients, as new treatments continue to improve outcomes and look to combat the worsening air quality around the globe. Real-time insights on said new drugs (and drugs yet to be released) can provide knowledge not easily attainable from traditional HCP market research, leading to a better understanding of the asthma landscape.
How can industry leaders act on these insights?
With ERS 2025 just around the corner, and more asthma data set to be released (nearly half of the pages of the programme mention the disease), it is an opportune time to listen to and engage with online HCPs who will no doubt be driving another spike in asthma conversation.
Engaging on social media with HCPs ahead of congresses is a great way to raise awareness and get them talking about your presentations. A recent post on LinkedIn from GSK is a great example of this, as it positions GSK at the forefront of tackling similar problems HCPs are discussing. However, there was little visible HCP engagement with this post, showing there is still work to be done to collaborate on this shared desire.
To discover how we can help you learn from the online HCP voice in asthma, get in touch.
