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27-04-2018 | Rheumatoid arthritis | News

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Long-term gains of subcutaneous abatacept demonstrated in RA patients

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medwireNews: Open-label extension results from the ACQUIRE trial suggest that treatment with subcutaneous abatacept has durable benefits for patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and an inadequate response to methotrexate.

The selective T-cell costimulation modulator is available as an intravenous and subcutaneous formulation, and the phase IIIb ACQUIRE trial previously demonstrated noninferiority of the subcutaneous formulation over a 6-month period, say Mark Genovese (Stanford University, Palo Alto, California, USA) and co-investigators.

During the open-label extension period, in which 945 participants received subcutaneous abatacept at a dose of 125 mg/week for at least 5 years, the researchers identified “no new safety signals,” and report that the majority of adverse events were mild or moderate in severity.

Patients treated with subcutaneous abatacept also experienced sustained efficacy, with 80.1% achieving at least a 20% improvement in ACR criteria after around 6 months of follow-up, and 84.6% meeting this endpoint after approximately 5 years.

These long-term data are consistent with previous findings for both intravenous and subcutaneous abatacept, and demonstrate that the subcutaneous formulation “has a consistent safety profile and durable efficacy in patients with RA who continue to receive treatment,” conclude Genovese and team in The Journal of Rheumatology.

By Claire Barnard

medwireNews is an independent medical news service provided by Springer Healthcare. © 2018 Springer Healthcare part of the Springer Nature group

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