By Lucy NotarantonioShareNewsweek is a Trust Project memberA California mom’s viral video documenting the dramatic return of pigment to her legs has stunned millions online—and it is all thanks to a clinical trial she joined earlier this year.
Reshma Vincent, 34, a stay-at-home mom and small business owner, from the Bay Area, told Newsweek she has lived since childhood with vitiligo—a skin condition in which pigment-producing cells are lost, leading to well-defined white patches on the skin.
"I feel excited and nervous because I’ve only known myself with vitiligo," Vincent told Newsweek. "So, seeing new spots with my natural color is surreal, something that’s still foreign to me."
The disorder affects about 1 percent of Americans—up to 2.8 million people—and first appeared for Vincent at age 5, beginning with small patches on her eyelid and knee that later spread across her body and face. This year, Vincent enrolled in a Pfizer clinical trial and started sharing her progress on Instagram (@reshma.climbs).
...On November 3, Vincent shared a clip, showing her legs nearly entirely white in June and then almost fully repigmented by November, racking up almost 7 million views.
Vincent said that it is now a Pfizer study. According to Clinical Trials, the study is testing whether the oral medication Ritlecitinib is safe and effective for treating nonsegmental vitiligo, the most-common form of the condition, which causes pigment loss on both sides of the body. Ritlecitinib has shown a promising safety record in earlier research.
Adults who join must pause other vitiligo treatments and are randomly assigned to receive either the medication or a placebo, with some switching to the drug later if they don’t respond. The trial lasts between 14 and 26 months and includes multiple check-in visits to monitor progress.
"I am excited about being in a trial that may help so many people and give them hope if they chose to seek treatment," Vincent said.
Her video, captioned "watching my melatonin make a comeback," left viewers astonished.
"Wow, that's a HUGE difference! So cool, I'm so happy for you!" one user wrote. Another added: "Wow! Modern medicine is amazing."
Vincent said vitiligo shaped nearly every part of her life. "It affected the way I walked into rooms, the way I took photos, the way I let people see me," she added, "from the stares I got to how people thought I was contagious. I was always trying to hide.
"But it also taught me strength—I had to unlearn shame, and to rebuild my confidence."
Reference
Gandhi, Kavita, et al. "Prevalence of Vitiligo Among Adults in the United States." JAMA Dermatology, vol. 158, no. 1, January 2022, pp. 1—9. PubMed Central, https://doi.org/10.1001/jamadermatol.2021.4724.
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