Treatment approved for peanut allergies

WASHINGTON — The first treatment for peanut allergies is about to hit the market, a big step toward better care for all kinds of food allergies — but still a long way from a cure.

The approval by the Food and Drug Administration promises to bring some relief to families who’ve lived in fear of an accidental bite of peanuts. Named Palforzia, it was developed by Aimmune Therapeutics.

“It’s been a lifechanger,” said Nina Nichols, 18, of Washington, whose first encounter with peanuts as a toddler — a peanut butter cracker shared by a friend — required a race to the emergency room. She entered a Palforzia research study as a teen and calls it “a security blanket.”

The treatment is a specially prepared peanut powder swallowed daily in tiny amounts that are gradually increased over months. It trains children’s and teens’ bodies to better tolerate peanut so that an accidental bite is less likely to cause a serious reaction, or even kill in severe cases. Palforzia users still must avoid peanuts just as they always have.

The treatment is not for everyone. Palforzia can cause side effects, including occasional severe allergic reactions. The FDA is requiring that doctors and their patients enroll in a special safety program, and patients must take the first dose and each increased dose under supervision in a certified health center.

And if youngsters stop taking the daily dose, they lose the protection.

Shots have long been used to induce tolerance for allergies to bee stings or pollen. But swallowing an allergen to build tolerance is a new approach — one that scientists call “oral immunotherapy.”