The purpose of this study is to identify the most promising therapeutic strategy for patients with granulomatosis with polyangiitis and inadequate response to standard of care therapy. It will evaluate the efficacy to induce remission of three different salvage strategies including: a combination of rituximab with addition of a conventional disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (either methotrexate, azathioprine or mycophenolate mofetil, but preferentially methotrexate); tocilizumab; or tofacitinib.
Granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) is an anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitides (AAV). Combination of glucocorticoids and either cyclophosphamide or rituximab is the standard of care for remission-induction of new-onset organ-threatening or life-threatening GPA. Few patients fail to respond to both cyclophosphamide and rituximab, but it is not uncommon for patients to have persistent disease activity resulting in inability to taper glucocorticoids, which is also considered refractory disease. The current recommendations for patients with GPA refractory to remission-induction therapy are to switch from cyclophosphamide to rituximab or from rituximab to cyclophosphamide. However, there are no recommendations for the management of patients with inadequate response after both treatments. Treatment with a biologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARD) or a combination of rituximab and a cDMARD are potential treatments options but have not been properly evaluated in such cases. Among biologic DMARD that have been evaluated in AAV, some have shown promising results, including tocilizumab and tofacitinib. Identifying the most promising therapeutic strategy for patients with GPA and inadequate response to standard of care therapy may improve management of GPA.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE
Enrollment
42
375 mg/m²/week for four consecutive weeks (Week 0, 1, 2 and 3) Maintenance rituximab at a fixed dose of 500 mg will be administered at week 24 and at week 52.
Subcutaneous injection of 162 mg per week
\- Tofacitinib, administered orally at a dose of 5 mg twice a day. Tofacitinib will start at week 0. Treatment will be continued until week 52
Hôpital de la Croix Saint Simon
Paris, France
Proportion of patients with a response or a remission
defined according to the EULAR recommendations. Remission is defined as the absence of disease activity attributable to active disease qualified by the need for ongoing stable maintenance immunosuppressive therapy. The term ''active disease'' is not restricted to vasculitis only, but also includes other inflammatory features like granulomatous inflammation. Response is defined as a 50% reduction of disease activity score and absence of new manifestations.
Time frame: week 12
Proportion of patients with a response or a remission at week 26 and 52.
according to the EULAR recommendations
Time frame: week 26 and 52
Physician's and patient's global assessment of disease activity
The difference between the physician's and patient's global assessment of disease activity between baseline and week 12 and between baseline and week 52 using a scale ranging from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more activity.
Time frame: week 12 and 52
Patient-reported outcomes
The patient-reported outcomes (PRO) including the ANCA-associated vasculitis patient-reported outcomes (AAV-PRO) questionnaire, a 29-item profile measure comprising six domains, with higher scores meaning more active disease, at week 12, 24, and 52 after randomization, and during the long-term follow-up.
Time frame: week 12, 24 and 52
Adverse events
The number of adverse events, expressed as adverse events according to the CTCAE toxicity grading system per patient-year at week 26 and 52 for the following adverse events combined: death (all causes), grade 2 or higher leukopenia or thrombocytopenia, grade 3 or higher infections, hemorrhagic cystitis, malignancies, venous thromboembolic events, hospitalization resulting either from the disease or from a complication due to the study treatment, infusion reactions (within 24 hours of infusion) that result in the cessation of further infusions
Time frame: week 26 and 52
Corticosteroids use
The area under the curve for corticosteroids at week 26 and 52
Time frame: week 26 and 52
Vasculitis Damage Index
The Vasculitis Damage Index (VDI, scoring from 0 to 58, higher scores indicating more damage) at week 26 and 52
Time frame: week 26 and 52
Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ)
ranging from 0 to 3, with higher scores indicating worse functional impairment
Time frame: week 26 and 52
Short Form 36 (SF-36) Health questionnaire
scores range from 0 to 100 for each component, with lower scores indicating greater impairment of quality of life
Time frame: week 26 and 52
ANCA titers
Evolution of ANCA titers in the treatment groups
Time frame: week 26 and 52
This platform is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional.