1.
A randomised, double-blind, sham-controlled study of granulocyte/monocyte apheresis for moderate to severe Crohn's disease
Sands BE, Katz S, Wolf DC, Feagan BG, Wang T, Gustofson LM, Wong C, Vandervoort MK, Hanauer S
Gut. 2012;62((9):):1288-94.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Activated granulocytes and monocytes may contribute to the pathogenesis of Crohn's disease (CD). In small, uncontrolled studies, granulocyte/monocyte apheresis (GMA) has shown promise in treating CD. We conducted a randomised, double-blind study to compare GMA with a sham procedure in patients with moderate to severe CD. DESIGN Patients with active CD as defined by a Crohn's Disease Activity Index (CDAI) of 220-450 were randomly allocated in a 2:1 ratio to treatment with GMA using the Adacolumn Apheresis System (JIMRO, Takasaki, Japan) or sham apheresis. Ten apheresis sessions were scheduled over a 9-week period, and efficacy was evaluated at week 12. The primary end point was the proportion of patients achieving clinical remission (CDAI score =150 without use of prohibited drugs). RESULTS Clinical remission was achieved by 17.8% of patients in the GMA group (n=157) compared with 19.2% of those in the sham control group (n=78) (absolute difference -1.4% (95% CI-12.8% to 8.5%), p=0.858). Clinical response (defined as a =100-point decrease in CDAI) was achieved by 28.0% and 26.9% of patients in the GMA and sham groups, respectively (p=1.000). The two treatments produced similar changes from baseline in CDAI and quality of life, as well as in disease severity assessed endoscopically. The incidence and types of adverse events did not differ between groups. CONCLUSIONS GMA was well tolerated, but this study did not demonstrate its effectiveness over a sham procedure in inducing clinical remission or response in patients with moderate to severe CD. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER Clinical Trials.gov identifier NCT00162942.
2.
A randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled study of granulocyte/monocyte apheresis for active ulcerative colitis
Sands BE, Sandborn WJ, Feagan B, Löfberg R, Hibi T, Wang T, Gustofson LM, Wong CJ, Vandervoort MK, Hanauer S, et al
Gastroenterology. 2008;135((2):):400-9.
Abstract
BACKGROUND & AIMS Activated granulocytes and monocytes/macrophages are implicated in the pathogenesis of ulcerative colitis. Open-label studies and clinical experience in Japan and Europe have suggested that granulocyte/monocyte apheresis is safe and effective in treating ulcerative colitis. METHODS We evaluated the efficacy of granulocyte/monocyte apheresis in a randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled trial in patients with active moderate-to-severe ulcerative colitis (Mayo score 6-11) in community-based and tertiary care centers. As intervention, we used granulocyte/monocyte apheresis with the Adacolumn Apheresis System (JIMRO, Ltd, Takasaki, Japan) or sham apheresis in a 2:1 ratio for 9 weeks of treatment in a North American pivotal study (N = 168) and in a smaller, companion study of identical design conducted in Europe and Japan (N = 47). RESULTS In the pivotal study, clinical remission rates (Mayo score 0-2, with scores of 0 on rectal bleeding and 0 or 1 on endoscopic examination) were 17% and 11% for the granulocyte/monocyte apheresis (n = 112)- and sham-treatment groups, respectively (n = 56; P = . 361). Clinical response (Mayo score reduction of ≥3 points from baseline) was observed in 44% and 39% of patients, respectively (P = . 620). Similar changes were observed for the apheresis- and sham-treatment groups for endoscopic remission and response, and changes in Mayo and quality-of-life scores. The companion study and pooled data from both studies also yielded similar results. CONCLUSIONS In this study, granulocyte/monocyte apheresis was well tolerated but did not demonstrate efficacy for induction of clinical remission or response in patients with moderate-to-severe ulcerative colitis.