Selecting first-line advanced therapy for ulcerative colitis: A clinical application of personalized medicine

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic autoimmune inflammatory disease that affects the colon, leading to symptoms of bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and urgency. The treatment of UC has evolved over the past few decades from locally active anti-inflammatory compounds to more selective therapies that target specific arrays of the immune system. The challenge of selecting the first advanced therapy became apparent in this rapidly expanding landscape of medications. No current investigational tools, such as genetic, immunologic, or biological markers, can guide the identification of the safest and most effective therapeutic option for each patient. Hence, physicians must carefully assess patient/disease characteristics and match them with the most suitable drug through a clinically driven assessment. In this paper, we outline patient and drug characteristics that play a role in selecting first-line advanced therapies for UC and propose an algorithm for selection.