The use of monoclonal antibodies has revolutionized the treatment of several types of cancer, rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn's disease. The New England Journal of Medicine publishes in its March 20 issue the results of an international study which reveals the efficiency of that type of treatment for a rare disease: the Hypereosinophilic Syndrome. This study ensues from a previous study headed by Elie Cogan (Erasme Hospital) and Michel Goldman who brought to light the overproduction of a factor stimulating eosinophils proliferation (interleukin-5) of a significant number of patients. The pharmaceutical society GlaxoSmithKline has developed a monoclonal antibody that neutralizes this mediator and has committed the clinical trials to several reference centres in the world among which the one headed by Florence Roufosse (Erasme Hospital and Institute for Medical Immunology).
Supported since many years by the National Fund for Scientific Research (F.R.S-FNRS) and by the Télévie, this clinician researcher has identified a new biomarker of the disease and is nowadays the principal interlocutor in Europe for american researchers and GlaxoSmithKline. Florence Roufosse played a crucial role in the publication of The New England Journal of Medecine.