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Acthar Gel may be effective in nonresponding patients with RA
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Patients with rheumatoid arthritis who failed to respond to prior treatment with biological agents with three different mechanisms of action may respond to treatment with Acthar Gel, according to data from the European League Against Rheumatism Annual European Congress of Rheumatology.
Researchers presented data from six patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) enrolled in an ongoing, 17-week study. The patients were between 54 years and 80 years of age with disease duration of between 9 years and 39 years. Eligible patients did not respond to a biologic at the time of enrollment and had failed to respond or insufficiently responded to at least two other biologic drugs with different response pathways.
Patients were assessed during screening and at baseline before being administered a subcutaneous 80 U dose of Acthar Gel (repository corticotropin, Mallinckrodt) every 72 hours for 12 weeks. The patients were then evaluated at week 2, 6, 12, 14 and 16.
Of the six patients who have completed the trial, all had reductions in tender and swollen joint counts from baseline at week 12. Three showed improvement in the Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ) score, and the remaining three patients showed no change in HAQ. Improvements in Disease Activity Score in 28 Joints (DAS28) were seen in all six patients, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate and C-reactive protein were improved in four patients. Five of six patients had an improved patient global VAS, and six had improvements in physician global VAS. Improvements were observed in most domains after 4 weeks, according to the researchers.
One patient experienced a mild injection site reaction and one had hypoglycemic episodes. One patient was hospitalized for hip pain unrelated to the injections. No patients withdrew from the treatment due to adverse events, and all events resolved. – by Shirley Pulawski
Reference:
Gillis TM, et al. Paper #AB0502. Presented at: European League Against Rheumatism Annual European Congress of Rheumatology; June 10-13, 2015; Rome.
Disclosures: Gillis reports grant/research support from Autoimmune and Rare Diseases Business (formerly Questcor)/Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals. Please see the full study for a list of all other authors’ relevant financial disclosures.