Citations

Abstract The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 [SARS-CoV-2]-causing coronavirus disease [COVID]-19 pandemic poses major challenges for patients with inflammatory bowel disease [IBD] to be recruited and maintained in clinical trials. However, clinical trials offer patients who have failed multiple drugs access to study medications with alternative modes of action and the potential for relief from inflammation-mediated symptoms. Therefore, the continuation of clinical trials in IBD during the COVID-19 pandemic is important both for participants and for the community of IBD patients, due to the dire need for an expanded therapeutic armamentarium. As the safety of patients in clinical trials is the leading principle, we are providing ten specific rules to guide patients and principal investigators safely through the challenging time.

INTRODUCTION: Tofacitinib is an oral, small molecule JAK inhibitor for the treatment of ulcerative colitis (UC). Tofacitinib safety in patients (pts) with UC was evaluated in an 8-week induction Phase (P) 2 study (NCT00787202), 1 2 8-week induction P3 studies (OCTAVE Induction 1 & 2; NCT01465763 & NCT01458951), 2 a 52-week maintenance P3 study (NCT01458574), and an ongoing, open-label, long-term extension (OLE) study (OCTAVE Open, NCT01470612). 3 We present updated infections data (Sep 2018) from the tofacitinib UC clinical program. 4,5 METHODS: Pts receiving placebo, tofacitinib 5 or 10 mg twice daily (BID) were analyzed as Induction (P2 & P3, n = 1220), Maintenance (P3, N = 592), and Overall (pts in P2, P3 & OLE receiving tofacitinib 5 or 10 mg BID, N = 1157 [Sep 2018]) Cohorts. Proportions and incidence rates (IRs; pts with events per 100 pt-years [PY] of exposure) were evaluated for infections of special interest (incl. serious infections [SIs], opportunistic infections [OIs; independently adjudicated], and herpes zoster [HZ]). RESULTS: A total of 1157 pts received ≥1 dose of tofacitinib 5 or 10 mg BID (83% predominantly 10 mg BID [avg. daily dose ≥15 mg]), with 2403.6 PY of exposure (median 623 days, up to 6.1 years of treatment). The Table 1 shows infection IRs by Cohort. In the Overall Cohort, nasopharyngitis was the most frequent infection. For SIs, the Overall Cohort “Tofacitinib All” IR (1.75 [95% CI 1.27, 2.36]) was similar to the Maintenance Cohort IRs for tofacitinib 5 and 10 mg BID. No SIs resulted in death. OIs were infrequent (28 pts) and most were HZ (24 pts; IR 0.99 [95% CI 0.63, 1.47]), mostly cutaneous. Not all HZ events were OIs; 83 pts overall had HZ events (IR 3.57 [95% CI 2.84, 4.43]; 6 serious). CONCLUSION: In induction, SIs and OIs occurred with tofacitinib but not with placebo. Overall, SIs were generally infrequent and Overall Cohort IRs did not suggest increased risk with longer tofacitinib treatment vs the Maintenance Cohort. Non-HZ OIs were rare. SI incidence was similar in the UC and rheumatoid arthritis programs (incl. increased HZ risk) 6 and to other UC therapies incl. biologics. 7

Abstract Background PYRAMID was an international multicenter, noninterventional, postmarketing registry assessing long-term safety and effectiveness of adalimumab (Humira), as used in routine clinical practice. Methods Adult patients with moderately to severely active Crohn’s disease with or without prior adalimumab experience were enrolled in the registry and followed for up to 6 years. Effectiveness measurements included the Physician’s Global Assessment (PGA, a composite of Harvey Bradshaw Index [HBI] and rectal bleeding score), clinical remission (HBI < 5), Short Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire (SIBDQ), and Work Productivity and Activity Impairment (WPAI) questionnaire. Data were reported for adalimumab-naïve patients and analyzed by baseline immunomodulator use and disease duration. Results This study evaluated 2057 adalimumab-naïve patients. Mean PGA improved from 7.5 (baseline) to 3.9 (year 1) and 3.3 (year 6). The proportion of patients in HBI remission increased from 29% (573 of 1969; baseline) to 68% (900 of 1331; year 1) and 75% (625 of 831; year 6). Patients stratified by baseline immunomodulator use had similar HBI remission rates; patients with disease duration <2 years achieved numerically higher HBI remission rates than patients with longer disease duration. Patient-reported SIBDQ and WPAI scores improved at year 1; all WPAI subscore improvements were clinically meaningful (≥7% point change) at year 1 and maintained through year 6. Serious infections were reported in 11.1% of patients; incidence rates of malignancies, lymphoma, and demyelinating disorders were low. Conclusion Adalimumab therapy, as used in routine clinical practice, improved physician-reported and patient-reported disease outcomes and remission rates for up to 6 years. No new safety signals were observed.

Background and aim Disease activity for Crohn's disease (CD) and UC is typically defined based on symptoms at a moment in time, and ignores the long-term burden of disease. The aims of this study were to select the attributes determining overall disease severity, to rank the importance of and to score these individual attributes for both CD and UC. Methods Using a modified Delphi panel, 14 members of the International Organization for the Study of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IOIBD) selected the most important attributes related to IBD. Eighteen IOIBD members then completed a statistical exercise (conjoint analysis) to create a relative ranking of these attributes. Adjusted utilities were developed by creating proportions for each level within an attribute. Results For CD, 15.8% of overall disease severity was attributed to the presence of mucosal lesions, 10.9% to history of a fistula, 9.7% to history of abscess and 7.4% to history of intestinal resection. For UC, 18.1% of overall disease severity was attributed to mucosal lesions, followed by 14.0% for impact on daily activities, 11.2% C reactive protein and 10.1% for prior experience with biologics. Overall disease severity indices were created on a 100-point scale by applying each attribute's average importance to the adjusted utilities. Conclusions Based on specialist opinion, overall CD severity was associated more with intestinal damage, in contrast to overall UC disease severity, which was more dependent on symptoms and impact on daily life. Once validated, disease severity indices may provide a useful tool for consistent assessment of overall disease severity in patients with IBD.