ALBERT

Description: Whether rituximab could effectively and safely avoid splenectomy for adults with chronic immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) remains unresolved. A multicenter, prospective, open-label, single-arm, phase 2 trial was conducted to assess rituximab safety and efficacy in adult splenectomy candidates with chronic ITP. Sixty patients with chronic (≥ 6 months) ITP and platelet counts less than 30 × 109/L received a weekly intravenous infusion of rituximab (375 mg/m2) for 4 weeks. All other ITP treatments were stopped. A good response was defined as a platelet count 50 × 109/L or more, with at least a doubling of the initial value at 1 and 2 years after the first rituximab infusion. Patients who required another treatment during follow up were considered nonresponders. Sixteen patients experienced transient side effects that necessitated treatment discontinuation for only 1. Good 1-year responses were obtained in 40% of the patients (24/60 [95% confidence interval: 28%-52%]). At 2 years, 33.3% (20/60 patients) had good responses and 6.7% (4/60) had sustained platelet counts of 30 × 109/L or more without treatment. Thirty-six (60%) patients failed to respond; 25 underwent splenectomy. Based on these results, rituximab was an apparently safe and effective splenectomy-avoiding option in some adults with chronic ITP. This trial is registered at http://clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00225875.

Description: Introduction: Splenectomy was historically regarded as the gold standard for treatment in chronic adult immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP). However, the recent emergence of new drugs has deeply modified ITP management and splenectomy is no longer viewed as an unavoidable step in adult chronic ITP in many countries. The estimation of the risk over benefit of this potential curative treatment remains challenging both for patients and physicians. A retrospective Italian study focused on long-term outcome of patients splenectomized for ITP gave reassuring data concerning safety. A recent study from a large cohort of American veterans showed an increased risk of death due to septicemia, pulmonary embolism, coronary artery disease and cancer more than 10 years after splenectomy. We reported here the results of the first single center case-control study evaluating the long-term incidence of splenectomy complications with a minimum follow-up of 10 years. Methods: We retrospectively selected in a clinical computer database all primary ITP patients splenectomized more than 10 years ago in our unit. We matched 1 by 1 to non-splenectomized ITP patients based on date and age at ITP diagnosis and sex criteria. Clinical data were then completed from medical charts. All patients were interviewed by phone and a standardized questionnaire was used. Medical records from general practitioner or from Medical care center have been systematically obtained if necessary, especially for deceased patients. Comparison between groups were made using Fisher’s test for qualitative variables, Kaplan-Meier method to estimate incidence and Rank test for comparison of cumulative incidence, with p

Description: Introduction: Warm autoimmune hemolytic anemia (wAIHA) is a rare autoimmune disease that can be life threatening especially in elderly patients. Rituximab has shown very promising efficacy in several uncontrolled studies and in one controlled trial for treating adult' wAIHA and it is commonly used off-label as a second-line treatment and as a corticosteroid-sparing agent. Methods: This phase 3 multicentre randomized (1/1 ratio) and double-blind controlled trial aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of rituximab compared to placebo for the treatment of adults with newly diagnosed wAIHA treated with prednisone. Inclusion criteria were: age ≥ 18 years with a confirmed diagnosis of wAIHA (hemoglobin level ≤ 10g/dL with hemolysis and a positive direct antiglobulin test with an anti-IgG ± anti-C3d pattern in the absence of any other cause of hereditary or acquired hemolytic anemia). Only patients previously treated with corticosteroids for less than 6 weeks could be included. Patients with secondary wAIHA (except for stage A chronic lymphocytic leukemia) were excluded. At time of inclusion, all patients were given prednisone at a daily dose of 1 mg/kg for 2 weeks and then tapered every 10 days according to a standardized procedure and stopped within 3 months in case of response. Eligible patients received in combination with prednisone (double-blind) 2 infusions of either rituximab (arm A) or placebo (arm B) at a fixed dose of 1,000 mg 2 weeks apart (on days 1 and 15 after randomization). The primary endpoint was the overall response rate (CR + PR) at 1 year in both arms. Complete remission (CR) was defined by a hemoglobin (Hb) level ≥11 g/dL (women) or 12 g/dL (men) without hemolysis (including a normal haptoglobin level) in the absence of any ongoing treatment for wAIHA, on 2 different occasions 4 weeks apart in the absence of recent transfusion. Partial remission (PR) was defined by a Hb level ≥ 10g/dL with at least a 2g increase from baseline in the absence of any other treatment than prednisone given at a daily dose ≤ 10 mg or recent transfusion. A non-response (NR) was defined by the need of receiving prednisone at a daily dose 〉 10mg to maintain a PR and/or any other treatment potentially active in wAIHA (i.e., splenectomy, immunosuppressors). The hypothesis for the calculation of the sample size (n = 32 patients, 16 in each arm) was, based on previous data from the literature, an 80% overall response rate (CR + PR) at 1 year in the RTX arm versus 20% in the placebo arm with an a risk of 5% and a b risk of 10%. Results: A total of 32 patients, 17 females (53%), with a mean age at inclusion of 71 (SD: 16) years were enrolled and randomized. The patients main characteristics (mean age, sex ratio, Hb and LDH levels, number of packed red cells transfused at diagnosis) were comparable in both arms. Twenty-eight patients were followed for at least 1 year and were evaluable for response. Three patients aged of 90, 84 and 87 from the placebo arm prematurely died versus none in the rituximab arm (p=0.073) and 1 patient from the placebo arm was prematurely withdrawn at Week 28 for severe anemia. At 1 year, in intention to treat, the overall response rate (CR + PR) was 75% (11 CR and 1 PR) in the rituximab arm versus 31% (5 CR) in the placebo arm (p value=0.032). Among the non-responders in the placebo arm, 6 patients were given azathioprine and 2 patients underwent splenectomy. There was no difference in the mean gammaglobulin level at 1 year between the 2 arms (8.1 ±2.2 g/l versus 7.7 ±1.5 g/l, p value 0.499). A total of 7 severe infections occurred during the first year of follow-up, 5 in the placebo group and 2 in the RTX group (p=0.39) including 2 cases of pneumocystosis (1 in each treatment arm) and 1 bilateral pneumonia due to Streptococcus pneumonia in the placebo arm. One severe pulmonary embolism occurred on day 15 in a 84-year-old woman in the placebo arm. Conclusion: Compared to placebo, rituximab given in combination with prednisone is an effective and safe option for treating adult patients with newly-diagnosed wAIHA leading to an overall response of 75% at one year. Disclosures Michel: Novartis: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; AMGEN: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; GSK: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau; Roche: Research Funding. Off Label Use: rituximab use in AIHA. Godeau:Roche: Research Funding; Amgen: Speakers Bureau; Novartis: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Speakers Bureau.

Description: Abstract 1320 Poster Board I-342 Backgound Adult's immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP), now referred as immune thrombocytopenia, is an autoimmune disease affecting preferentially women of child-bearing age. The risk of relapse or worsening of the disease during pregnancy in women with a previous history of ITP or followed for a chronic ITP is not well known and the monitoring of such patients is therefore not consensual. In order to better asses the impact of pregnancy on ITP' course and natural history, a study was initiated at the national referral center for adult's immune cytopenias at Creteil, France. Patients and Methods This was an observational single center study. To be included into the study, all women had to fulfill the following inclusion criteria: 1) A previous history of definite ITP outside pregnancy with a platelet count 〈 50×109/L at time of diagnosis and 2) Occurrence of at least one pregnancy within 10 years after ITP diagnosis. Patients diagnosed with secondary ITP (lupus-associated or other) or in whom ITP was diagnosed during a previous pregnancy could not be included. All available clinical and biological ITP-related data available before, during and after each pregnancy were extensively reviewed and analyzed. Results Data on 44 pregnancies in 33 women (mean age: 25 ± 7 years) were analyzed. The mean delay between ITP diagnosis and first pregnancy was 52 ± 19,8 months. At the beginning of pregnancy, ITP was considered “active” (i.e platelet count 100 × 109/L) in 75% of the cases, either off therapy (82%) or on treatment (18% of the cases). In total, the platelet count remained stable during pregnancy In 25/44 of the cases (57%) without the need of any treatment except for one patient who received corticosteroids for an associated autoimmune hemolytic anemia diagnosed during pregnancy (Evans' syndrome). A slight decrease in the platelet count (between 50 and 100×109/L) was observed in 12 cases (27%), 6 of which occurred at the end of pregnancy. In nine of these cases, patients were given a short course of corticosteroids in preparation for delivery. Lastly, a decrease of the platelet count below 50×109/L was observed in only 7 of the 44 pregnancies (16%). In 6 of these 7 cases, patients were given corticosteroids, either alone (n=2) or in combination with intravenous immunoglobulin (n=4 cases); one patient was also given a platelet transfusion. No severe bleeding episode (mucosal bleeding or any hemorrhage) occurred in any of these cases prior to, during or after delivery. A miscarriage occurred in 6 of the 44 pregnancies (13.5%), a C-section was performed in 18% of the cases which is the usual average rate in France. In total, a treatment for ITP had been considered useful in 15 pregnancies (34%) mainly at the end of the third trimester. The mean platelet count at time of delivery was 107 ± 17 × 109/L, None of the patients had a relapse or a significant decrease of the platelet count within 6 months after delivery except for a one patient who presented with a severe (platelet count 〈 20 × 109/L) and symptomatic (cutaneous and mucosal bleeding) thrombocytopenia on day 2 after delivery. Conclusion Based on these preliminary data, pregnancy does not seem to have a negative impact on the course of the disease in women with chronic non-refractory ITP nor to increase the risk of relapse in those with a previous history of ITP. A significant decrease of the platelet count may occur in about 15% of the cases, mainly during the third trimester. In women with a platelet count between 50 and 100 × 109/L at term, a short course of treatment could be indicated in preparation for delivery and especially if an epidural analgesia is planned. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Description: Abstract 3519 Poster Board III-456 Introduction Romiplostim is a thrombopoietic agent that has been unequivocaly demonstrated as highly effective in adult's ITP in prospective studies and has recently been licensed for adults with chronic ITP in USA, Europe, Canada, and Australia. France has been the only country where romiplostim could be given for a compassionate use outside clinical studies from January 2008. The official indication for obtaining romiplostim in this setting was: chronic ITP according to the international criteria and failure or relapse after at least one previous line of therapy regardless the status towards splenectomy. We report here the data on safety and efficacy of the first consecutive 80 ITP patients who have been registered by the French health authorities as receiving the treatment “off-label” and with at least one-year of follow up. Patients and methods The data were retrospectively reviewed using a standardized form. The protocol was approved by local ethical committee. Patients who did not fulfil official indication criteria of compassionate use were excluded (i.e. secondary-ITP). Platelet count was monitored at least monthly during the follow-up. Platelet response was defined as platelet count of 50×109/L or more and a doubling of the pre-treatment count in the absence of any rescue medication within the last 8 weeks. One-year sustained response was defined as a platelet response on at least 2 of the last 3 platelet determinations at month-10-11 and 12. Patients who received rescue medication at any time during the study could not be counted as having a one-year sustained response. Report of adverse events was captured using a standardized form. Results Among the 80 patients, 8 were actually excluded from the analysis (6 with secondary ITP and 2 have been misdiagnosed as having ITP). The analysis was then conducted on 72 patients (43 females) with a median age of 60 years (20 to 91). The median duration of ITP prior to romiplostim administration was 8.7 years (0.1 to 49) and the patients had received a median of 5 (2 to 12) treatment-lines before romiplostim including: corticosteroids (100%), rituximab (65/72, 90%) and splenectomy (39/72, 54%). Among the 33 non-splenectomized patients, 13 patients were reluctant to undergo splenectomy whereas splenectomy was considered as contra-indicated in 20 of them. At time of romiplostim first administration, median platelet count was 16×109/L (1 to 60) and 48 patients (66%) were receiving a concurrent treatment for ITP, including mainly steroids (n=29) ± immunosuppressive drugs (n=8). A platelet response was observed at least once in 76% (55/72) of the patients. On average, patients who responded at any point during the study had a platelet response during 64% of the time (range: 37 to 100%). Romiplostim was stopped in 28 % (20/72) of patients for either lack of efficacy (n=16), for intolerance (n=1) or because it was administered only transiently in preparation for surgery (n=3). Two patients had died respectively from a septic shock and from an ITP-related intracranial hemorrhage. At one-year of follow up, 52 patients were still receiving romiplostim at a median dose of 6.5 μg/kg per week. This dose remained relatively stable as after the first 12 weeks of treatment, romiplostim could be pursued at a stable dose ± 2 μg/kg in 82% of the cases. Twenty % (14/72) of patients received a rescue medication during the study and 50% (36/72) of the patients had a one-year sustained response. The percentage of one-year sustained response was similar in splenectomized and non splenectomized groups [respectively 54% (21/39) and 45% (15/33), NS)]. Among the 29 patients who responded to romiplostim and who were receiving a treatment at time of romiplostim initiation, 86 % (25/29) had discontinued this medication and a further 7% (2/29) had reduced the dose by at least 25%. Only one patient stopped romiplostim because of an adverse event (headache). The most frequent otherwise reported adverse events were: arthralgia (26%), fatigue (13%) and nausea (7%). A transient thrombocytosis 〉 400×109/L and 〉 1000×109/L has been observed in respectively 19% (14/72) and 4% (3/72) of patients. A transient stroke occurred in 2 elderly patients (age 〉 70 yrs). No deep vein thrombosis occurred. Myelofibrosis was not observed. Conclusion Our study confirms in “real-life” that romiplostim is definitely an effective and safe treatment for severe chronic ITP in both non-splenectomized and splenectomized adults. Disclosures: Godeau: AMGEN: Consultancy.

Description: Romiplostim, a thrombopoietic agent with demonstrated efficacy against immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) in prospective controlled studies, was recently licensed for adults with chronic ITP. Only France has allowed romiplostim compassionate use since January 2008. ITP patients could receive romiplostim when they failed to respond to successive corticosteroids, intravenous immunoglobulins, rituximab, and splenectomy, or when splenectomy was not indicated. We included the first 80 patients enrolled in this program with at least 2 years of follow-up. Primary platelet response (platelet count ≥ 50 × 109/L and double baseline) was observed in 74% of all patients. Long-term responses (2 years) were observed in 47 (65%) patients, 37 (79%) had sustained platelet responses with a median platelet count of 106 × 109/L (interquartile range, 75-167 × 109/L), and 10 (21%) were still taking romiplostim, despite a median platelet count of 38 × 109/L (interquartile range, 35-44 × 109/L), but with clinical benefit (lower dose and/or fewer concomitant treatment(s) and/or diminished bleeding signs). A high bleeding score and use of concomitant ITP therapy were baseline factors predicting romiplostim failure. The most frequently reported adverse events were: arthralgias (26%), fatigue (13%), and nausea (7%). Our results confirmed that romiplostim use in clinical practice is effective and safe for severe chronic ITP. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT01013181.

Description: Key Points Tolerance of rituximab is acceptable in ITP, and with its benefit/risk ratio may remain a valid option for treating ITP in adults.

Description: Abstract 4651 Romiplostim and eltrombopag, the first thrombopoietic receptor-agonists (TPO-RAs) with demonstrated efficacy against immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) in prospective controlled studies, were recently authorized in Europe for adults with chronic ITP. Their efficacies and safety profiles were evaluated in 46 ITP patients who sequentially received both drugs. Thirty-five patients first received romiplostim (romiplostim group), whereas eltrombopag (eltrombopag group) was the first TPO-RA for 11 patients. All but 2 patients had previously received corticosteroids and IVIg, and 70% had been given rituximab without responding. The splenectomy rate was 50% (23/46). Patients were switching from one to the other for the following reasons: lack of efficacy for half of them, platelet-count fluctuations for 11, side effects for 4 and 8 patients' preferences. For 50% to 80% of the patients, switching from 1 TPO-RA to the other effectively impacted the platelet count, with the disappearance of its fluctuations in 54%, and side effects resolved in 100%. In 80% of the patients, the 2 TPO-RAs achieved similar response patterns. Our results confirmed that switching from 1 TPO-RA to the other could be beneficial in clinical practice for patients with severe chronic ITP who failed to respond or experienced adverse events(s) to the first. Disclosures: Khellaf: AMgen: Honoraria; Glaxo Smith Kline: Honoraria. Viallard:Amgen: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees.

Description: Introduction Adults with ITP usually respond to corticosteroids but typically relapse after discontinuation. Rituximab is thought to be an effective off-label second-line treatment but only few prospective data exist about its long-term efficacy and its long-term safety is a matter of concern. The tolerance and particularly the risk of severe infection is a crucial factor for assessing the risk/benefit ratio of this treatment in ITP. Three years ago, we opened a non-interventional prospective registry in France to investigate the safety (primary outcome) and the efficacy of rituximab in off-trials adults with ITP (ClinicalTrials.Gov: NC1101295). Two hundred and fifty two patients were included on a two-year period. A follow-up duration of five-year is planned. We report here the first results after one year of follow-up. Methods The ITP-Ritux registry was set up by the French reference center of adult’s immune cytopenias. Thirty one centers participated to the study. Consecutive patients diagnosed with primary ITP according to the international guidelines (Rodeghiero et al, Blood 2009) who were treated with rituximab were included. Patients with a secondary ITP and those who were previously treated with rituximab were excluded. Response to treatment was assessed according to international guidelines: complete response (CR) was defined by platelet count ³100x109/L and response (R) by a platelet count between 30 and 100x109/L with at least a doubling of the pre-treatment count. The prospective and sequential monitoring of rituximab efficacy and safety was made by using of a standardized electronic case report form. Study nurses visited each center regularly to update the clinical and biological data on the enrolled patients. Results Between July 2010 and July 2012, 252 patients (64% of females) with a mean age of 51±21 (16-97) years were enrolled. The median duration of ITP was 1.3 (0-56) years with 44 patients (17%) with a newly diagnosed ITP, 61 (24%) with persistent ITP and 147 (58%) with chronic ITP at time of rituximab treatment. The median platelet counts at time of ITP diagnosis and rituximab first infusion were respectively 18x109/L (1-100) and 17x109/L (1-186). Patients received a median of 2 treatment lines (range 0-7) before rituximab and 25 (10%) were splenectomized. The standard regimen of 375 mg/m2 weekly rituximab infusions for 4 weeks was administered to 179 patients whereas 73 patients (29%) received a fixed dose of 1000 mg on day 1 and day 15. At time of the present analysis, the median follow-up was 18 months and the one-year response was available in 209 patients. A one-year overall response was observed in 90/209 (43%) patients including a CR in 28% and a R in 15%. Nineteen patients who failed to respond to rituximab were splenectomized during the year following rituximab infusions. Sixty eight adverse events occurred in 47 patients (19%). Rituximab infusions have to be stopped in only 3 patients for severe hypotension, dyspnoea with laryngeal discomfort and reversible serum sickness respectively. Three other patients developed severe adverse event related to rituximab requiring admission in hospital including 1 episode of profound neutropenia while 6 episodes of infections occurred in 2 patients. Seven patients (2.7%) have died during follow-up, 52 to 385 days after rituximab infusions. All patients who died but one aged of 18 were 68 to 98-year old. Only one death could be potentially related to rituximab (enterococcus faecium pulmonary infection), 2 deaths were of unknown origin, other causes were: suicide (n=1), multiple myeloma (n=1) and fatal haemorrhage related to ITP (n=2). We did not observe any episode of progressive multifocal encephalopathy or any other case of opportunistic infection. Discussion and conclusion Our preliminary results based on the first large non-interventional prospective registry of ITP-adults treated with rituximab in the “real life” confirm that this treatment leads overall to 40% of response after one year of follow-up. Safety of rituximab at 1 year appears to be good since severe infections were uncommon and no opportunistic infections were observed. The ongoing monitoring and upcoming analysis with a planned follow-up up to 5-years will provide more data on long-term safety. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.