Are specialized pro-resolving mediators promising therapeutic agents for severe bronchial asthma?

In Japan, although the number of patients with asthma has increased, the number of patients who die from asthma has decreased (1.2 per 100,000 patients in 2015) (1). Currently, although the majority of asthma patients can be effectively treated with available medications, such as inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) or ICS/long-acting β2 agonists (ICS/LABA), options remain to be established for difficult-to-treat asthma (severe asthma), which can be considered an unmet need. Patients with severe asthma (presumably less than 10% of all asthma cases) who experience exacerbations consume considerable healthcare resources (2). According to data from a U.S. study by Chastek et al., in 2013, the total adjusted asthma-related costs among patients with severe asthma were $5,112 per year, or 2.9-fold higher than that among patients with persistent asthma (3).