According to the American Academy of Dermatology, 84.5 million Americans — one in four — are impacted by skin diseases. Skin diseases cost the US health care system $75 billion in medical, preventative, and prescription and non-prescription drug costs. Acne is the most common skin disease in the United States, affecting up to 50 million Americans annually.
Approximately 85 % of people between the ages of 12 and 24 experience at least minor acne. Over 25% of women and 12% of men in their 40s report having acne.
50% of women in their 20s,
33% of women in their 30s, and
25% of women in their 40s suffer from acne. Acne can affect more than your skin. Researchers have found in study after study that people with acne can also develop: depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, poor self-image, decreased quality of life, a feeling of being all alone. Although myriad acne treatments are available, current options may not be sufficient because of a lack of efficacy, limited tolerability, or burden of cost to patients. As patients become more concerned about the risks and side-effects of acne medications such as oral antibiotics and isotretinoin, other options are needed.
The paper "Innovation in acne treatment is long overdue but the treatment pipeline looks promising" was published in The Pharmaceutical Journal in 2017. At the start of this paper the author stated:
"There is no cure, and available treatments have significant drawbacks, yet there have been no novel products launched over the past 10 years — innovation is long overdue."
“For many years it’s been repurposing the same old stuff,” says Adam Friedman, a dermatologist at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Washington. Unfortunately for millions acne sufferers this statement is still actual today, 7 years after this paper was published (look at current acne clinical trial landscape below).
CURRENT ACNE CLINICAL TRIAL LANDSCAPE
This is a snapshot of Phase I–IV clinical trials for primary investigational drugs with at least one industry sponsor in the acne space in
the curated Trialtrove database. There are equal proportions of clinical trials for acne across Phase I/II and Phase III/IV. Phase I/II and
Phase II/III trials are counted as Phase II and Phase III, respectively.
Forging a new standard in inflammatory dermatology.
Samdolite Pharmaceuticals is a science-driven dermatology company dedicated to redefining how inflammatory skin disease is treated. Built on deep mechanistic insight into innate immune activation, Samdolite is advancing a new generation of topical therapies designed to be potent without being punitive—effective without compromising skin health or systemic safety.
At the center of this vision is CromAzol™, Samdolite’s lead first-in-class topical anti-inflammatory therapy.
________________________________________
On a mission to deliver power without punishment.
For decades, dermatology has relied on treatments that suppress, deplete, or overcorrect—often at the cost of tolerability or long-term safety. Samdolite was founded on a different belief: that precision modulation of inflammation, rather than blunt force suppression, is the key to durable skin health.
CromAzol™ is engineered to reversibly inhibit mast-cell– and neutrophil-driven inflammation upstream, addressing the biological drivers of acne, rosacea, and other inflammatory skin diseases—without systemic immune ablation or antibiotic dependence.
________________________________________
Built for those who demand to understand.
Samdolite is designed for a new generation of dermatology stakeholders—clinicians, scientists, partners, and patients—who expect more than vague claims or recycled mechanisms.
These are individuals who ask:
• How does it work?
• What pathway is being targeted?
• Why should this be safer—and more effective—than what exists today?
CromAzol™ answers those questions through a mutual-prodrug architecture, quantifiable biological rationale, and a development strategy aligned with modern regulatory science.
________________________________________
With therapies designed to deliver meaningful clinical impact.
CromAzol™ is not positioned as another incremental topical—it represents a platform approach to inflammatory dermatology. The same architecture supporting acne and rosacea is being extended to additional indications, including chronic urticaria, atopic dermatitis, and psoriasis.
Every Samdolite therapy is designed to:
• Address inflammation at its biological origin
• Be compatible with long-term use
• Integrate seamlessly into real-world dermatological care
________________________________________
A name that reflects purpose.
CromAzol™ embodies Samdolite’s founding principles:
• Mechanism before marketing
• Efficacy rooted in biology
• Innovation guided by restraint, not excess
It reflects the belief that meaningful skin transformation begins with purposeful science, not overcorrection.
Rosacea is also our target.
Rosacea is a chronic inflammatory skin disease that affects 16 million Americans (The National Rosacea Society, http://www.rosacea.org/). Rosacea is a mast cell–derived disease. This statement is accepted by lead dermatologists.
Just read this article "Mast cells may play key role in rosacea pathogenesis"
“Once activated, the mast cells can promote the release of different mediators and have a considerable effect on the pathophysiology of diverse inflammatory diseases,” Dr. Wang et al.
“Mast cells appear to play an intricate role in the pathophysiology of rosacea and could serve as potential targets for future therapies, according to recent study findings.”
Read more information about rosacea and current and coming treatments for this disease in our APPROACH page.
