Dupilumab's Impact on Height, 40-GEP for HNcSCC Lead Posters at Maui Derm

The impact of dupilumab on children’s height and the 40-gene expression profile (40-GEP) test for patients with cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (HNcSCC) were the topics of the top two posters in the “Late Breakers 2025” session at Maui Derm 2025 in Maui, Hawaii.

Sonia Cyr, PhD, presented “Growth Analysis in Children Aged 6 to 11 Years with Severe Atopic Dermatitis and Impact of 16 Weeks of Dupilumab Treatment on Height.” A 2007-2008 assessment of atopic dermatitis (AD) severity and height found significantly higher odds of height lower than the 25th percentile among adolescents with moderate-to-severe AD, Dr. Cyr noted, adding that that percentile is associated with a higher risk of low bone mineral density and low alkaline phosphatase. Dupilumab vs placebo was shown to significantly increase levels of bone ALP in serum from children 6-11 with moderate-to-severe AD.

Dr. Cyr’s research “essentially confirms” the proportion of children 6-11 with severe AD and lower stature who reached an improvement of 5 percentage points or more in height following 16 weeks of treatment compared with children in the placebo group.

The results indicated that “prompt and effective management of AD with dupilumab in younger children may have lifelong benefit in those who are below expected height by improving vertical growth,” she said.

Emily Ruiz, MD, MPH, FAAD, presented “Metastasis-free survival prediction with the 40-gene expression profile (40-GEP) test in patients with cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (HNcSCC) risk stratified according to the Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) tumor staging criteria.” Her research found that the 40-GEP significantly stratified metastatic risk in HNcSCC overall.

“For cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, risk stratification really is key because … the sheer number of tumors diagnosed each year that prevents us from really offering treatment intensification to all cases,” Dr. Ruiz said. “Both Brigham and 40-GEP are significant predictors for metastasis, but when you put them together, we actually get increased metastatic risk prediction.”