Benzinga | Apr 14, 2021 07:33AM EDT

Inozyme Pharma Highlights Presentation Of Data From Burden Of Illness Study In Patients With ENPP1 Deficiency And ABCC6 Deficiency At the 2021 Annual Clinical Genetics Meeting Of The American College Of Medical Genetics And Genomics

Inozyme Pharma, Inc., a rare disease biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics for the treatment of abnormal mineralization disorders, today presented data that highlight the burden of disease for patients and families affected by ENPP1 Deficiency and ABCC6 Deficiency, two devastating and potentially deadly genetic diseases. In a poster entitled, From the Voice of Patients and Caregivers: Burden of Illness in Infantile Onset ABCC6 and ENPP1 Deficiency (GACI and ARHR2), Inozyme and GACI Global reported that patients in different age groups are impacted in different ways, an age-based shift that reflects the progression of these rare genetic diseases. The poster was presented virtually beginning on April 14th at the annual meeting of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG).

Patients with ENPP1 Deficiency or ABCC6 Deficiency exhibit a range of signs and symptoms that can include arterial calcification, cardiac and neurological involvement, skeletal abnormalities, and hearing loss. ENPP1 Deficiency manifests as generalized arterial calcification of infancy (GACI) type 1 in infants and autosomal recessive hypophosphatemic rickets type 2 (ARHR2) in children and adults. ABCC6 Deficiency is a disease that can lead to an acute form called GACI type 2 in infants and pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE) in older patients.

"This study is the first to describe the burden of illness in infantile-onset ABCC6 Deficiency and across the age spectrum in patients with ENPP1 Deficiency," noted Catherine Nester, Vice President of Physician and Patient Strategies at Inozyme, and one of the authors of the poster presented at ACMG. "Although we knew that the cardiovascular and skeletal complications of these diseases exact a significant burden on patients and families, we were surprised to learn just how burdensome the actual care coordination can be, from securing a diagnosis, to dealing with multiple tests and treatment options, to managing ongoing care from multiple specialists. The knowledge gained from this study will inform our efforts to develop therapies that we hope will ease the burden for patients and families living with these devastating rare genetic diseases."

Inozyme worked in partnership with GACI Global to conduct the From the Voice of Patients and Caregivers study. GACI Global is a patient advocacy organization dedicated to providing hope and education to patients and families affected by GACI and ARHR2. The study collected primary patient-reported outcomes data to determine the disease burden in individuals diagnosed with infantile-onset ABCC6 Deficiency or ENPP1 Deficiency in patients of all ages. A total of 38 respondents from nine countries participated in the study, including six individuals with ABCC6 Deficiency, 12 infants with ENPP1 Deficiency, 13 children with ENPP1 Deficiency, and seven adults with ENPP1 Deficiency. Parents or caregivers responded on behalf of patients younger than 18 years of age. The study included responses from parents or caregivers of 11 deceased patients, 10 of whom died within the first 12 months of life.

The most frequently reported burdens for patients with ENPP1 Deficiency at all time points were:

* bone and joint pain (100% of adult patients, 85% of pediatric patients)

* cardiac issues (86% of adult patients, 85% of pediatric patients)

* mobility issues/fatigue (86% of adult patients, 85% of pediatric patients)

The most frequently reported symptoms for patients with ABCC6 Deficiency were:

* gastrointestinal issues (83%)

* growth and development issues (83%)

* cardiac issues (67%)

The study also assessed the importance of each burden for each cohort using a weighted score approach:

* In the ABCC6 Deficiency cohort, fear of the unknown was the heaviest burden, followed by cardiac issues and difficulty with the hospital experience.

* In the infant ENPP1 Deficiency cohort, cardiac issues were the greatest burden, followed by difficulty with the hospital experience and issues related to growth and development.

* In the pediatric ENPP1 Deficiency cohort, treatments/medications were most burdensome, followed by issues related to hearing loss and stress/anxiety.

* The adult ENPP1 Deficiency cohort was most burdened by issues related to bone/joint pain. Other heavily weighted burdens in this cohort included mobility issues, fatigue, and fear of the unknown.

"From the unthinkable devastation of a new parent losing their child, to cardiac complications for infants, to the complex medical management of cardiovascular and skeletal issues in pediatric patients, and the cumulative impact of cardiovascular and skeletal complications in adults, this study clearly shows that ENPP1 and ABCC6 Deficiencies are chronic and highly morbid diseases that affect patients of all ages, as reflected in the constellation of physical, emotional, and social burdens across the age continuum," commented Christine O'Brien, co-president of GACI Global and co-author of the study. "We hope our results spur further study of ABCC6 and ENPP1 Deficiencies, and that improved understanding, diagnosis, and management of these rare genetic diseases will alleviate some of the uncertainty and fear for patients and families."