defining the optimal biological monotherapy in rheumatoid ...orca.cf.ac.uk/95863/1/bio mono...
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This is an Open Access document downloaded from ORCA, Cardiff University's institutional
repository: http://orca.cf.ac.uk/95863/
This is the author’s version of a work that was submitted to / accepted for publication.
Citation for final published version:
Tarp, Simon, Furst, Daniel E., Dossing, Anna, Østergaard, Mikkel, Lorenzen, Tove, Hansen,
Michael S., Singh, Jasvinder A., Choy, Ernest Ho Sing, Boers, Maarten, Suarez-Almazor, Maria E.,
Kristensen, Lars E., Bliddal, Henning and Christensen, Robin 2016. Defining the optimal biological
monotherapy in rheumatoid arthritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised trials.
Seminars in Arthritis and Rheumatism 46 (6) , pp. 699-708. 10.1016/j.semarthrit.2016.09.003 file
Publishers page: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.semarthrit.2016.09.003
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Definingtheoptimalbiologicalmonotherapyinrheumatoidarthritis:
Asystematicreviewandnetworkmeta-analysisofrandomisedtrials
Authors:
SimonTarp,1DanielE.Furst,2AnnaDøssing,1MikkelØstergaard,3ToveLorenzen,4MichaelS.
Hansen,5JasvinderA.Singh,6ErnestH.Choy,7MaartenBoers,8MariaE.Suarez-Almazor,9LarsE.
Kristensen,1HenningBliddal,1RobinChristensen1
Correspondenceto:
RobinChristensen,MSc,PhD;SeniorBiostatistician
ProfessorofClinicalEpidemiology.
HeadofMusculoskeletalStatisticsUnit,
TheParkerInstitute,Dept.Rheumatology,
CopenhagenUniversityHospital,BispebjergandFrederiksberg.
NordreFasanvej57;DK-2000CopenhagenF,Denmark.
Email:[email protected];
Fax:(+45)38164159
RunningTitle:Optimalbiologicalmonotherapyinrheumatoidarthritis
Keywords:RheumatoidArthritis,Meta-Analysis,Biologics,systematicreview
WordCount:
Abstract:250(MAX250)
ManuscriptText:2,759(MAX3000)
TablesandFigures:X/Y(MAX6)
References:XX(MAX50)
PROSPEROidentifier:CRD42012002800
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Author Affiliationande-mail1SimonTarp MusculoskeletalStatisticsUnit,TheParkerInstitute,Dept.Rheum.,
CopenhagenUniversityHospital,BispebjergandFrederiksberg,Denmark.
[email protected] UniversityofCalifornia,LosAngeles,CA,USA
[email protected]øssing MusculoskeletalStatisticsUnit,TheParkerInstitute,Dept.Rheum.,
CopenhagenUniversityHospital,BispebjergandFrederiksberg,Denmark.
[email protected]Østergaard CopenhagenCenterforArthritisResearch,CenterforRheumatologyandSpine
Diseases,GlostrupHospital,and
DepartmentofClinicalMedicine,UniversityofCopenhagen,Denmark
[email protected] DepartmentofRheumatology,DiagnosticCentre,SilkeborgRegionalHospital,
[email protected] ReumaKlinikRoskilde,Roskilde,and
GildhøjPrivathospital,Brøndby,Denmark
[email protected] MedicineService,BirminghamVAMedicalCenterandUniversityofAlabamaat
Birmingham(UAB),Birmingham,AL,USA&MayoClinicCollegeofMedicine,
Rochester,MN,USA
[email protected] 7ErnestH.Choy ArthritisResearchUKandHealthandCareResearchWalesCREATECentre,
SectionofRheumatology,CardiffUniversitySchoolofMedicine,Tenovus
Building,HeathPark,Cardiff,UK
[email protected] DepartmentofEpidemiology&Biostatistics,VUUniversityMedicalCenter,
Amsterdam,TheNetherlands.
9MariaE.Suarez-Almazor, SectionofRheumatologyandClinicalImmunology
UniversityofTexasMDAndersonCancerCenter,Houston,TX,USA.
[email protected], MusculoskeletalStatisticsUnit,TheParkerInstitute,Dept.Rheum.,
CopenhagenUniversityHospital,BispebjergandFrederiksberg,Denmark.
[email protected] MusculoskeletalStatisticsUnit,TheParkerInstitute,Dept.Rheum.,
CopenhagenUniversityHospital,BispebjergandFrederiksberg,Denmark.
MusculoskeletalStatisticsUnit,TheParkerInstitute,Dept.Rheum.,
CopenhagenUniversityHospital,BispebjergandFrederiksberg,Denmark.
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ABSTRACT
Objectives:Tosummariseandcomparethebenefitsandharmsofbiologicalagentsusedas
monotherapyforrheumatoidarthritis(RA).
Methods:WesearchedMEDLINE,EMBASE,theCochraneCentralRegisterofControlledTrialsand
othersourcesforrandomisedtrialsthatcomparedbiologicalmonotherapywithmethotrexate,
placebo,orotherbiologicalmonotherapies.PrimaryoutcomeswereAmericanCollegeof
Rheumatology50%improvement(ACR50)andthenumberofpatientswhodiscontinueddueto
adverseevents.Ournetworkmeta-analysiswasbasedonmixed-effectslogisticregression,
includingbothdirectandindirectcomparisonsofthetreatmenteffects,whilstpreservingthe
randomisedcomparisonswithineachtrial.
Results:Theanalysiscomprises28trials(8,602patients),includingallninebiologicalagents
approvedforRA.Oftheincludedtrials,8(29%)included‘DMARD-naïve’,and20(71%)‘DMARD-
Inadequateresponder’(DMARD-IR)patients.Allagentsexceptanakinraandinfliximabwere
superiortoplacebowithregardtoACR50.Etanerceptandrituximabweresuperiortoanakinra.
Tocilizumabwassuperiortoadalimumab,anakinra,certolizumab,andgolimumab.Whenincluding
onlyDMARD-IRtrials,thesamestatisticalpatternemerged,complementedwithsuperiorityof
etanerceptandtocilizumabcomparedwithabatacept.Focusingonrecommendeddoses,both
etanerceptandtocilizumabweresuperiortoadalimumabandcertolizumab.Nodifferencesin
benefitamongetanercept,tocilizumab,andrituximabwerefound.However,becauserituximab
wasevaluatedinjust40patients,ourconfidenceintheestimatesislimited,Nostatistically
significantdifferencesamongbiologicalagentswerefoundwithrespecttoharm.
Conclusions:Evidencesuggestsetanerceptortocilizumabtobethemostappropriatechoicefor
RApatientstreatedwithbiologicalmonotherapy.
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INTRODUCTION
Inflammationinrheumatoidarthritis(RA)patientsshouldbesuppressedasearlyaspossible
{Emery,20061954/id},withpharmacologictreatmentdirectedattightcontrolofinflammation
{Huizinga,20102381/id;Smolen,20102327/id}.Disease-modifyingantirheumaticdrugs
(DMARDs)caninterferewiththediseaseprocess{Smolen,20141918/id;Singh,20122330/id}.
ConventionalsyntheticDMARDs(csDMARDs)includemethotrexate(MTX),hydroxychloroquine,
leflunomide,sulfasalazine,andglucocorticoids.csDMARDscanalsobeusedinvarious
combinations{Singh,20122330/id}.MTXisconsideredthestandardcsDMARD,butinhigh-risk
patients,earlycombinationofMTXwithprednisoloneorabiologicalagentimprovesoutcomes
{Klarenbeek,20102382/id}.
BiologicalagentsareusuallygiventopatientswithactiveRAwhohavenotachieved
satisfactoryresponsetooneormorecsDMARDssuchasMTX{Smolen,20141918/id}.Currently,
thebiologicalagentsapprovedforRAincludethefollowingninedrugs:fivetumournecrosisfactor
inhibitors(TNFi)–adalimumab,certolizumabpegol,etanercept,golimumab,andinfliximab;and
fourwithothermodesofaction–anakinra,abatacept,rituximab,andtocilizumab{Furst,2012
2331/id}.InfliximabandgolimumabareapprovedbytheU.S.FoodandDrugAdministration(FDA)
andtheEuropeanMedicinesAgency(EMA)onlywithconcomitantuseofMTX,andrituximabonly
withacsDMARD{Emery,20132499/id}.Allotherbiologicalagentsarealsoapprovedin
monotherapy,albeitabataceptandanakinraonlybytheFDA{Emery,20132499/id}.
Recently,concernshavebeenraisedastowhetherexternalfactors,includinglackof
adherencetocsDMARDtherapy,mightreducetheanticipatedbenefitassociatedwithuseof
biologicagentsifpatientsdiscontinueuseofaconcomitantcsDMARD.Evidencefromreal-life
registrydatashowsthatapproximatelyone-thirdofRApatientstreatedwithbiologicalagentsuse
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themasmonotherapyandthatwhenMTXisprescribedincombinationwithabiologicalagent,
morethanhalfofthepatientsdonottakeMTXasprescribed{Emery,20132499/id}.
Asmostbiologicalagentshaveshownmorefavourableresultsincombinationwith
csDMARDtherapy{Singh,20091746/id},andmanyRApatientsmightnotadheretotheirMTX
prescription,itisimportanttoevaluatethebenefitandharmassociatedwithuseofbiological
agentsasmonotherapy,andnotonlythetraditionalcombinationtherapystrategies{Bergman,
20101744/id;Guyot,20112376/id;Guyot,20122375/id}.Therefore,theobjectiveofthisstudy
wastoassesstheefficacyandsafetyoftheindividualbiologicalagentsappliedasmonotherapyin
patientswithRAtoinformdecisionmakersontherelativeeffectivenessofbiologicalagentsused
inmonotherapy.
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METHODS
Anetworkmeta-analysisofrandomisedtrialscombineddirectandindirectevidence.Methodsof
analysisandinclusioncriteriawerespecifiedinadvanceanddocumentedinaprotocol(PROSPERO
2012:CRD42012002800).Bothprotocolandanalyseswerepreparedaccordingtothe
‘MethodologicalExpectationsforCochraneInterventionReviews’(MECIR)program.Ourstudy
conformstothePRISMAguidelinesforreportingsystematicreviews{Liberati,20092163/id}.
Literaturesearch
WesearchedTheCochraneCentralRegisterofControlledTrials,Medline,Embase,and
ClinicalTrials.govforpublishedreportsfrominceptionofeachdatabasethroughDecember16,
2014(SupplementTable1).Wecombinedtermsforrheumatoidarthritiswiththeninebiological
agentsofinterest(abatacept,adalimumab,anakinra,certolizumabpegol,etanercept,golimumab,
infliximab,rituximab,andtocilizumab).Searchresultswerelimitedtorandomisedcontrolledtrials
(RCTs)byapplyingappropriatefilters.Wethencollatedadditionalreportsidentifiedinrelevant
systematicreviewsnotretrievedthroughtheelectronicdatabases.Wealsoscrutinizedrelevant
reportsonFDA'sandEMA'swebsitesandsearchedrelevantpharmaceuticalcompanies’websites
toidentifyunpublishedtrialdata.
Trialselection
Double-blindrandomisedtrialsstudyingtheadministrationofoneoftheeligiblebiologicalagents
wereconsideredeligibleiftheywereusedasmonotherapyinan(FDA/EMA)-approvedrouteof
administrationinRApatients.Trialswereconsideredeligibleifatleastonewithin-study
comparisonwasavailablewithplacebo,MTX,oranotherapprovedbiologicalagentas
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monotherapy.Wedidnotincludeopenlabeltrials,trialswithnofullEnglishtextavailable,trials
notreportingACR50responses,trialscomparingthesamebiologicalagentwithandwithoutMTX,
ortrialscomparingdifferentdosesofthesamebiologicalagentinmonotherapy.
Outcomemeasures
Thecore-outcomedataineachstudyconsistofthesamplesizeofthegroupsandthenumberof
patientsineachgroupwhometthepredefinedoutcomesofinterest.Aprioriitwasdecidedtouse
theoutcomeassessmentat6months,ifavailable.If6monthsdatawereunavailable,weused
dataclosestto6monthsineachtrial.Twomajoroutcomeswereconsideredco-primary
{Ghogomu,20142462/id}:benefit–definedastheACR50responsecriteria{Chung,20061641
/id};andharmbyproxy–determinedbythenumberofwithdrawalsbecauseofadverseevents
{Ioannidis,20041372/id}.ACR50isconsideredavalidated,clinicallymeaningfulbinarymeasure
ofbenefit{Singh,20091746/id}.Withdrawalsthatoccurbecauseofadverseeventsareameasure
ofpatients’toleranceofadverseeventsreportedconsistently{Singh,20091746/id}.The
secondaryoutcomeswereACR20,ACR70,totalnumberofpatientswhowithdrewfromthestudy,
andthenumberofpatientswhoexperiencedatleastoneseriousadverseevent(SAE).
Datacollectionandrisk-of-biasassessment
Outcomemeasureextractionswerebasedontheintention-to-treat(ITT)populationwhenever
possible.Twoindependentreviewers(STandAD)extractedallthedata.Datawerecollectedon
thegeneralcharacteristicsoftheRCTandsamplesize.Theinterventionsbeingcomparedwere
extracted,includingdosagesandfrequencyoftheadministereddrugs.
Theinternalvalidityoftheincludedstudieswasevaluatedonthebasisofthe
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apparentriskofbiaswithineachRCT;domains(includingselectionbias,performancebias,
detectionbias,attritionbias,andreportingbias)wereassessedusingtheitemsoftherisk-of-bias
toolasrecommendedbytheCochraneCollaboration{Higgins,20111853/id}.
Datasynthesisandanalysis
Weusedrandomeffectsmeta-analysesbydefault,assumingthetruetreatmenteffectdiffers
fromstudytostudy{Riley,20112502/id}.Unlikeacontrast-based(standard)meta-analysis
approach{DerSimonian,1986525/id},anarm-basedapproachwasusedtoincludemultiple
comparisonsinthenetworkmeta-analysis{Salanti,20082039/id}inordertocombinebothdirect
andindirectcomparisons.Weperformedmixed-effectslogisticregressionusingan(arm-based)
randomeffectsmodelwithinanempiricalBayesframework{Singh,20091746/id;Platt,1999
2711/id}.Thegeneralisedlinearmixedmodel(GLMM)incorporatesavectorofrandomeffects
andadesignmatrixfortherandomeffects{Platt,19992711/id}.Allowancewasmadefor
differencesinheterogeneityofeffectsbetweendifferentdrugsbyspecifyingthatthelinear
predictorvariesatthelevelofstudyandasaninteractionbetweenstudyanddrug.Inthenetwork
meta-analyses,wemeasuredheterogeneity(i.e.,between-studyvariance)fortheanalysisusingT2
(anestimateforTau-squared),whichexaminesheterogeneitybecauseofStudyandStudy×Drug
interaction(smallervaluesindicateabettermodelperse).
Sensitivityanalyses
Posthocsensitivityanalysesontheprimaryoutcomeswereconductedtoexploreimpactof
csDMARDhistoryanddose:(i)exclusionofstudiesnotevaluatingcsDMARDinadequateresponder
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patients;(ii)exclusionoftrialarmsnotevaluatinganFDA-orEMA-recommendedaverage
maintenancedose(definedinSupplementTable2),includingMTXcomparatortrialarmsnot
evaluatinganoralMTXdoseofatleast10mgweekly(orsubcutaneousinequivalentdose).Ifonly
onetrialarmevaluatedarecommendeddose,thewholestudywasexcludedfromthesensitivity
analysis(placebotrialarms[i.e.,nobiologicalorcsDMARDtreatment]werecategorisedas
recommendeddosefortechnicalreasons).
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-Figure1.(Flowdiagram)AroundHere-
RESULTS
Characteristicsofreviewedstudies
Searchesoffourprimaryelectronicdatabasesandreviewsidentified4,405uniquereferences.Of
thetotal,818provedpotentiallyrelevantforfull-textreview,and45referencesthatreported28
uniquerandomisedtrialsofall9FDA/EMAapprovedbiologicalagentsprovedeligible(Figure1).
The28randomisedtrials,comprisingatotalof79uniquetrial-arms,included8,602
patientswithRA:abatacept(2trials;350patients),adalimumab(6trials;1,928patients),anakinra
(1trial;472patients),certolizumab(2trials;421patients),etanercept(5trials;2,047patients),
golimumab(4trials;1,279patients),infliximab(1trial;58patients),rituximab(1trial;80patients),
andtocilizumab(6trials;1,967patients).Theincludedtrialshaddifferentstudydesigns:13
comparedabiologicalagentinmonotherapywithplacebo;14comparedabiologicalagentin
monotherapytoMTX;andonlyonestudycomparedtwobiologicalagents(tocilizumabin
monotherapyvs.adalimumabinmonotherapy){Gabay,20132418/id}(Table1).Thenetworkof
eligiblecomparisonsfortheprimaryefficacyoutcome(ACR50)isshowninFigure2.Thenetwork
forwithdrawalsbecauseofadverseeventswasessentiallythesame.Ofthe28includedtrials,8
(29%)included‘csDMARD-naïve’,20(71%)‘csDMARD-IR’,and0(0%)enrolledbiologicalagent
inadequateresponderpatients(Table1;referencesavailableinSupplementTable3).
-Figure2.(Networkdiagram)AroundHere-
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Benefitandharmaccordingtoprimaryoutcomes
AsillustratedinFigure3A,mostbiologicalagents(aswellasMTX)werestatisticallysignificantly
morelikelythanplacebotoleadtoanACR50response;exceptionswereanakinraandinfliximab.
Ofthe28includedstudies(allreportingACR50),24reportedwithdrawalsbecauseofadverse
events.Comparedtoplacebo,withdrawalsbecauseofadverseeventswerenotstatistically
significantlyhigheramongpatientsforanyofthedrugs(Figure3B).Forsensitivity,directpairwise
meta-analyseswereconductedforbothprimarybenefitandharmoutcome.Aspresentedin
SupplementFigure1-4,estimatesfromthenetworkmeta-analysiswereinagreementwiththe
directevidence(i.e.,pointestimatefromthenetworkmeta-analysiswereincludedwithinthe
95%CIofthedirectestimate).Theonlyexceptionwastocilizumabcomparedwithplacebofor
withdrawalbecauseofadverseevents,wherethepointestimatefromthenetworkmeta-analysis
(1.84)wasnotincludedwithinthe95%CIofthedirectestimate(0.04to1.29).Further,forbenefit
thedirectpairwisemeta-analysisfoundrelevantinconsistencyforcertolizumabpegolcompared
withplacebo(I2=71%),withnoobviousexplanation.Relevantinconsistencywasalsofoundfor
etanerceptandtocilizumabcomparedwithMTX(I2=83%and80%respectively),probably
explainedbythelowMTXdose(8mgweekly)usedintwoJapanesetrials(etanercept{Takeuchi,
2012};tocilizumab{Nishimoto,2009}.Thesetwotrialswereexcludedinthesensitivityanalysisof
recommendeddose.Forharm,relevantinconsistencywasalsofoundforetanerceptcompared
withMTX(I2=79%),probablyexplainedbethelowMTXdoseappliedintheJapanesetrial.
-Figure3A&B.(Networkmeta-analysisforestplotsofprimarybenefit/harmeach
biologicalagentcomparedwithplacebo)AroundHere
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Figure4presentsallcomparisonsamongtheninebiologicalagentsinmonotherapy,MTX,and
placebointermsofbothbenefit(ACR50)andharm(withdrawalsbecauseofadverseevents).
Etanerceptwasmorelikelytoleadtoclinicalresponsethananakinra(OR=3.38;95%CI,1.26to
9.01)andMTX(1.54;1.03to2.32;Figure4).Rituximabalsoappearsmoreeffectivethananakinra
(4.26;1.01to17.86).Tocilizumabappearssuperiorwhencomparedwitheachofthefollowing:
adalimumab(1.97;1.22to3.17),anakinra(3.97;1.49to10.53),certolizumabpegol(2.35;1.06to
5.24),golimumab(1.77;1.00to3.13),andMTX(1.82;1.23to2.68).Allothercomparisonsamong
biologicalagentsinmonotherapywerenotstatisticallysignificantlydifferent.Whenharmswere
monitoredbyproxyaccordingtoallcomparisons(Figure4),noneofthedrugsincludedinthe
networkappearedmorelikelythanotherstoleadtodiscontinuationduetoadverseevents.
Figure4.(PrimaryBenefitandharmofallbiologicalagentsaccordingtothe
networkmeta-analysis)AroundHere
Benefitandharmaccordingtosecondaryoutcomes
Fromtheprimaryanalysis,basedontheprimarybenefit-outcome,statisticalevidencesuggested
etanercepttobemoreefficaciousthananakinraandMTX.Insecondaryoutcomeanalyses,this
findingwassupportedforACR20butnotforACR70,whereetanerceptwasnotstatistically
significantlydifferentfromMTX(1.47;0.92to2.36)(SupplementTable4).Rituximabwas
statisticallysignificantlysuperiortoanakinrafortheprimarybenefit-outcome,whichwas
supportedbyanalysesofACR20andACR70.Tocilizumabwasstatisticallysuperiortoadalimumab,
anakinra,certolizumabpegol,golimumab,andMTXforACR50,aneffectthatappearedrobust
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whenACR20andACR70rateswereevaluated(SupplementTable4)withoneexception;
tocilizumabwasnotstatisticallysignificantlysuperiortogolimumab(1.85;0.97to3.52).
Whensecondaryharmmeasures,SAEs,andthetotalnumberofwithdrawals
(SupplementTable5)wereexamined,nostatisticallysignificantdifferencesoccurredforSAEs
(anakinrawasnotincludedduetolackofreporting).Forthetotalnumberofwithdrawals,
tocilizumabwasstatisticallysignificantlymorefavourablethanabatacept,adalimumab,anakinra,
andMTX.
Sensitivityanalysesintrialsusingtherecommendeddose
Whentheanalysisoftheprimarybenefitoutcome(ACR50)wasbasedontreatmentwiththe
recommendedmaintenancedose(SupplementTable6),anakinraandinfliximabwerenot
included,asthesebiologicalagentswerenotevaluatedattherecommendeddoses.Theapparent
superiorityofetanerceptoverMTXcouldnotbeconfirmedstatisticallyforitsrecommendeddose
(OR= 1.25;0.90to1.72).However,initsrecommendeddose,etanerceptwasnowmorelikelyto
leadtoclinicalresponsethanadalimumabandcertolizumabpegol.Thefindingsfortocilizumab
appearedrobust,withsuperiorityoveradalimumab,certolizumabpegol,andMTX.However,the
apparentsuperiorityoftocilizumabovergolimumabcouldnotstatisticallybeconfirmedfor
recommendeddose(OR= 2.07;0.89to4.85).Monitoringharmsbyproxyaccordingtoall
comparisons(SupplementTable6),adalimumab,etanercept,tocilizumabattheirrecommended
doses,andMTX(≥10mgweekly)wereallmorelikelythanplacebotoleadtodiscontinuationdue
toadverseevents.However,nodifferencesamonganybiologicalagentsorMTXwerestatistically
significant.
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SensitivityanalysesamongDMARD-IRpatients
Whentheanalysisoftheprimarybenefitoutcome(ACR50)wasbasedonstudiesofpatientswho
hadhadaninadequateresponsetocsDMARDs(DMARD-IR;seeSupplementTable7),thefindings
foretanerceptwererobustasitwasstillmorelikelytoleadtoclinicalresponsethananakinraand
MTX.Theapparentsuperiorityofrituximaboveranakinracouldnotbestatisticallyconfirmed
(3.03;0.66to14.29).Also,thefindingsfortocilizumabappearedrobust,withsuperiorityover
adalimumab,anakinra,golimumab,andMTX.However,theapparentsuperiorityoftocilizumab
overcertolizumabpegolcouldnotbeconfirmedinthesensitivityanalysisbasedonDMARD-IR
patientsonly(2.18;0.89to5.32).
Further,toexplorehowmuchimpacttheonly“biologicshead-to-head”comparisonstudy
(ADACTA){Gabay,20132418/id}hadontheestimatesinthenetwork,theDMARD-IRsensitivity
analyseswereperformedwithexclusionoftheADACTAstudyontocilizumabagainstadalimumab
inDMARD-IRpatients(SupplementaryTable8),revealingsparsedatasupportingsuperiorityof
tocilizumabcomparedwithotherbiologicalagentspriortotheADACTAstudy(e.g.,vs.
adalimumab1.81;0.80to4.15).IntheADACTAstudy,tocilizumabwasstatisticallysignificantly
superiortoadalimumab(2.33;1.47to3.69).
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DISCUSSION
Thisstudysuggeststherearedifferencesineffectivenessbutnotinharmamongbiologicalagents
appliedasmonotherapyinRA.Patient-importantbenefitssuchasACR50occurredmore
frequentlywithetanerceptortocilizumabmonotherapythanwithotherbiologicalagents.
Althoughtocilizumabwassuperiortoahighernumberofagentsthanthenumberetanerceptwas
superiorto,nostatisticallysignificantdifferencebetweentocilizumabandetanerceptwasfound
throughouttheconductedanalyses.Further,inrecommendeddose,bothetanerceptand
tocilizumabweresuperiortoadalimumabandcertolizumabpegol.Despiterituximab'sbeing
superiortoanakinra,hadresponseratescomparabletoetanerceptandtocilizumabagainst
placebo,andnodifferencesbetweenrituximabandetanerceptortocilizumabwerefound,
evidenceonrituximabwasbasedononestudyonly,where40patientsweretreatedwith
rituximabmonotherapy,therebylimitingourconfidenceinthesefindings.
Ourfindingsarerelevantbecausesubstantialnumbersofpatientseitherdonot
tolerateMTX(orothercsDMARDs),ordiscontinuetheseagentsforunknownreasons{Emery,
20132499/id}.RegistrydataconfirmthatbiologicalmonotherapyisacommontreatmentinRA
{Yazici,20084353/id;Jorgensen,20154352/id;Emery,20132499/id}.Inthesensitivityanalysisof
csDMARD-inadequateresponderpatients,mostagentshadresponseratescomparableto
continueduseofMTXmonotherapy,whereonlyetanerceptandtocilizumabmonotherapywere
superiortoMTX.
Onlyonehead-to-headtrialcomparingmonotherapywithtwobiologicalagents,
tocilizumabandadalimumab,hasbeenpublished{Gabay,20132418/id}.Wetherefore
performedanetworkmeta-analysistoindirectlycompareotherevaluatedtherapies,cognisantof
thelimitationsofthisapproach{Mills,2012}.Thismethodologyreliesuponassumptionsaboutthe
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similaritiesoftheincludedtrialsintermsofcomparabilityofpatientandstudycharacteristics
{saliati2014}.However,thecomparativeeffectivenessparadigmdictatesthatguidelinepanelsas
wellascliniciansandpatientsarechallengedwiththedilemmaofchoosingamongthesetherapies
intheabsenceofrobustcomparativedataabouttheirrelativebenefitandharmdifferences.
Other(recent)networkmeta-analyses,toalargeextent,supportourfindingsregarding
etanercept’sandtocilizumab’sfavourableprofilesintermsofACR50{Buckley,20154355
/id;Migliore,20154356/id;Orme,20124357/id}.However,duetodifferentstudy
inclusion/exclusioncriteriaanddifferentmethodologicalapproaches,thesestudiesdifferwith
respecttothecomparativeeffectivenessbetweenetanerceptandtocilizumab.Inthestudyby
Buckleyetal.{Buckley,20154355/id},tocilizumabmonotherapywasnotstatisticallysignificantly
differentfromTNFimonotherapy(i.e.,allTNFi’swerecombined).Miglioreetal.{Migliore,2015
4356/id},whorestrictedtheireligibilitycriteriatostudiesofbiologicalagentsapprovedinEUfor
RAasmonotherapy;foundthattocilizumabwassuperiortoetanercept.Otherdiscrepancieswhen
comparedtoourstudyincludedtheminimumtreatmentdurationof16weeks,thedateofsearch,
andomissionofunpublishedtrials(e.g.,thenowpublishedFUNCTIONstudy[tocilizumab
monotherapyvs.MTX]{Burmester2015}hadresultsavailableonlineApril2013inthecompany
trialdatabase).AlthoughMiglioreetal.waslimitedtodouble-blindRCTs,aswasourstudy,it
includedtheopen-labelSAMURAIstudy(tocilizumabmonotherapyvs.csDMARDs;only x-ray
reader-blinded).Further,theadalimumabmonotherapystudyCHANGE{Miyasaka,2008}andthe
etanerceptmonotherapystudybyTakeuchietal.{Takeuchi2012}werenotincluded,although
bothfulfilledinclusioncriteriaandwerepublishedbeforedateofsearch(September2013).The
thirdnetworkmeta-analysisbyOrmeetal.{Orme,20124357/id}showedtocilizumab
monotherapywasnotstatisticallysignificantlydifferentfrometanerceptmonotherapy.
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Ourevidencesynthesisalsohaslimitations.Theincludedstudiesspana17-yearperiod,
from1998through2015;sopatientsenrolledinearlystudiesmaydifferfromthoseincludedin
morerecentstudies.Moreover,theRApatientsenrolledinthedifferentmonotherapystudiesare
tosomeextentheterogeneous(encompassingdifferentdurationofdiseasesanddifferencesinthe
extentofpriorMTXfailure).Further,onlyonehead-to-headtrialwasidentified,reducingour
confidenceinthecomparativeestimates.Inotherwords,futurebiologicalagentmonotherapy
head-to-headtrialswilllikelyhaveanimportantimpactonourestimates.Apriori,wedefineda
hierarchicallistofoutcomes,givingpriorityto6monthsdatawhenavailable.Whentheywerenot
available,othertimepointswereused(e.g.,ninestudieslastedonly16weeksorless,andinsix
studiessafetydatawereavailableonlyafteroneyearormore.Comparisonsamongstudiesacross
differenttimepointscouldpotentiallylimittheinterpretationofourresults.Further,whetherour
resultscanbeextrapolatedtolong-termefficacyandsafetyisnotclear.
Inconclusion,trialevidencesuggestsetanerceptortocilizumabtobethemostappropriate
choicetoRApatientstreatedwithbiologicalmonotherapy.
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ContributorsConceptionanddesign:RC,ST,DEF,MØ,TL,MSH,JAS,BJE,HB.Analysisand
interpretationofthedata:All.Draftingofthearticle:ST,RC,andHB.Criticalrevisionofthearticle
forimportantintellectualcontent:All.Finalapprovalofthearticle:All.Statisticalexpertise:RC,ST,
DEF,MØ,TL,MSH,JAS.Collectionandassemblyofdata:RC,ST,DEF,AD.Obtainingoffunding:RC,
MØ,TL,MSH,andHB.
FundingThisstudy,includingtheprotocol,wassupportedbyagrantfromRoche,Denmark;the
grantwasprovidedasanunrestrictedgranttoMusculoskeletalStatisticsUnit,TheParker
Institute.Thesponsorofthestudyhadnoroleindatacollection,dataanalysis,data
interpretation,orwritingofthemanuscript.Thecorrespondingauthorhadfullaccesstoallthe
datainthestudyandhadthefinalresponsibilityforthedecisiontosubmitforpublication.
CompetinginterestsST:Researchgrantspaidtoinstitute:AbbVieandRoche;Speakersbureau:
PfizerandMSD.RC:Consultingfeespaidtoinstitute:Abbott/Abbvie,Bristol-MyersSquibb,EliLilly,
Hospira,MSD,Novartis,Pfizer,andRoche;Researchgrantspaidtoinstitute:Abbott/Abbvie,MSD,
Mundipharma/Norpharma,Novartis,andRoche.DEF:hasreceivedresearchgrantsorhasan
advisoryroleforAbbott,Amgen,BMS,Janssen,Pfizer,Roche/GenentechandUCB.Heisamember
ofaspeaker’sbureauforAbbottandUCB(CMEonly).AD:Nonedeclared.MØ:hasreceived
consultancy/speakerfeesand/orresearchsupportformAbbott/Abbvie,BMS,Boehringer-
Ingelheim,Celgene,Eli-Lilly,Centocor,GSK,Janssen,Merck,Mundipharma,Novartis,Novo,Pfizer,
Schering-Plough,Roche,Takeda,UCB,andWyeth.TL:HasreceivedconsultantfeesfromPfizerand
Roche.MSH:HasreceivedconsultantfeesfromRoche.JAS: hasreceivedresearchgrantsfrom
TakedaandSavientandconsultantfeesfromSavient,Takeda,Regeneron,Merz,Bioiberica,
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CrealtaandAllergan.JASservesastheprincipalinvestigatorforaninvestigator-initiatedstudy
fundedbyHorizonpharmaceuticalsthroughagranttoDINORA,Inc.,a501(c)(3)entity.JASisa
memberoftheexecutiveofOMERACT,anorganizationthatdevelopsoutcomemeasuresin
rheumatologyandreceivesarms-lengthfundingfrom36companies;amemberoftheAmerican
CollegeofRheumatology's(ACR)AnnualMeetingPlanningCommittee(AMPC);ChairoftheACR
Meet-the-Professor,WorkshopandStudyGroupSubcommittee;andamemberoftheVeterans
AffairsRheumatologyFieldAdvisoryCommittee.“Theviewsexpressedinthisarticlearethoseof
theauthorsanddonotnecessarilyreflectthepositionorpolicyoftheDepartmentofVeterans
AffairsortheUnitedStatesgovernment”.EHC:hasreceivedresearchgrantsand
consultancy/speakerfeesfromAbbottLaboratories,Allergan,Amgen,AstraZeneca,Biogen,BMS,
BoehringerIngelheim,Celgene,ChugaiPharma,DaiichiSankyo,EliLilly,FerringPharmacuetical,
GSK,Hospira,ISIS,JazzPharmaceuticals,Jenssen,MedImmune,MerrimackPharmaceutical,MSD,
Napp,Novimmune,Novartis,Pfizer,Regeneron,Roche,Sanofi-Aventis,Synovate,Tonix,andUCB.
MB:Nonedeclared.MES-A:hasreceivedaresearchgrantfromPfizerandconsultantfeesfrom
Abbvie.LEK:Nonedeclared.HB:hasreceivedresearchgrantsand/ortravelandcongresssupport
fromAbbott,Bristol-MyersSquibb,Lilly,MSD,Pfizer,Roche,UCB,andWyeth.
Acknowledgment:TheParkerInstituteissupportedbygrantsfromtheOakFoundation.
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