(Photo: Reuters)

In a late stage trial Dupixent, jointly developed with Regeneron led to a 30% reduction in moderate or severe acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a potentially deadly disease marked by progressive lung function decline.

Sanofi and Regeneron said in a statement on Thursday a Phase III trial involving 939 current or former smokers also showed improvements in lung function, quality of life and COPD respiratory symptoms.