A monthly selection of topical peer-reviewed articles from the Adis journals, curated by the editors.

How can rheumatologists respond to the challenges associated with rituximab use during the pandemic?

3–9 November: Keep up with the latest news and interviews from the conference.

Perspective on the approval of anifrolumab and the importance of endpoints in lupus trials.

5 – 9 November: Preview the conference with session recommendations and updates on upcoming coverage.

How will the FAST trial results impact regulatory guidance & clinical practice?

Experts discuss the increasing use of telemedicine in rheumatology during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced inflammatory arthritis among patients with cancer may need long-term management by rheumatologists after cessation of treatment, but does not appear to affect cancer outcomes, say researchers.

Preliminary data point to the utility of magnetic resonance imaging for the early diagnosis of immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced inflammatory arthritis in cancer patients.

In this review, mechanisms of action of checkpoint inhibitors and how they might cause rheumatic immune-related adverse events are described [ read more ]. Calabrese LH, Calabrese C, Cappelli LC. Nat Rev Rheumatol 2018. doi: 10.1038/s41584-018-0074-9

This study sought to conduct a systematic review of the literature to determine the number of clinical cases of vasculitis that have been reported so far with the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors, and explore the clinical commonalities that exist between these cases [ read more ]. Daxini A, Cronin K, Sreih AG. Clin Rheumatol 2018. doi: 10.1007/s10067-018-4177-0

A single-center study adds support to the contention that immune checkpoint inhibitors need not be withheld from cancer patients with pre-existing rheumatic conditions.

Flares and immune-related adverse events are common in patients with autoimmune disease who are receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors for cancer but can often be managed without discontinuing treatment, a systematic review suggests.

Treatment with interleukin-6 receptor blockers could be an effective option for patients with cancer who develop severe arthritis in response to immune checkpoint inhibition therapy, say researchers who describe three such cases in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases .