UCB wants to help patients “Make HStory.” The Belgian drugmaker is launching the campaign, including a 30-second video, to raise awareness of the reality of living with the chronic skin condition hidradenitis suppurativa (HS).
HS, a condition that causes skin abscesses and scarring, is one of the indications UCB is targeting with its IL-17 monoclonal antibody Bimzelx. Having won FDA approval in plaque psoriasis, UCB is now going after other indications including HS. The FDA recently accepted a filing for approval in HS and UCB is raising awareness of the condition among physicians and patients ahead of a potential launch.
The latest piece of the awareness push came online Wednesday, when UCB launched a video to support its patient-focused “Make HStory” campaign. The 30-second video shows three people living with HS to make the case that things are changing for people with the skin condition.
“If you're living with hidradenitis suppurativa or HS, it's your time to ‘Make HStory’, to swap feeling body conscious for a bodycon dress and let the sparks fly, to move away from the isolation, the worry of pain, boils and scars. [This is] your moment to feel good in your skin again. It's time to fight for a better way forward and your chance to ‘Make HStory’,” the voiceover says.
The video opens with a woman sitting in the back of a car, smiling and looking at herself in a compact mirror, on a rainy night. The woman steps out of the car wearing a glamorous dress and is met by a man.
In the next scene, another woman happily high-fives someone at the gym, unselfconsciously revealing HS-related scarring in her armpit. The ad ends with a shot of a man hugging a child at a pool party. As the footage wraps up, the voiceover encourages viewers to find “dermatologists experienced in treating HS and get tips on how to talk with them at MakeHStory.com.”
The website features patient stories and downloadable resources such as fact sheets, visuals that depict how symptoms vary based on skin tone, tips on how to manage flare-ups and conversation starters for doctor visits. UCB will also run a spot featuring real HS patients on select streaming services, a range of unbranded media activations across consumer publications, and content on Instagram and Facebook.