SUMMIT, N.J., June 24, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Vascarta Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company advancing innovative treatments for pain and inflammation, announced today the successful completion of the sublingual arm of its Phase I clinical trial evaluating VAS-101 (Vasceptor®; topical curcumin gel) for the treatment of sickle cell disease (SCD). The study was conducted by the Foundation for Sickle Cell Disease Research (FSCDR) in Hollywood, Florida, under the supervision of the principal investigator, Dr. Gershwin Blyden. The findings were published today in the Journal of Sickle Cell Disease: Low-Dose Sublingual Curcumin Improves Red Blood Cell Sickling Kinetics in Sickle Cell Disease: Interim Results from a Pilot Study | Journal of Sickle Cell Disease | Oxford Academic
Five (5) patients with sickle cell disease were treated sublingually with a minimal dosing (0.1 mL) of VAS-101 twice per week for a total of 8 treatments. Their blood was drawn and analyzed weekly. The duration of treatment was 29 days. All participants demonstrated favorable safety and tolerability. Directional improvements were observed across several patient-reported outcomes. Mean pain scores decreased from 7.0 at baseline to 6.6 by Day 15, with several participants demonstrating clinically meaningful reductions from baseline. Measures of fatigue and energy also improved, with out-of-energy scores decreasing from 3.6 at baseline to 2.2 by Day 22 and fatigue limits improving from 2.8 to 2.0.