source: The New England Journal of Medicine

year: 2018

authors: Adams D, Gonzalez-Duarte A, O'Riordan WD, Yang CC, Ueda M, Kristen AV, Tournev I, Schmidt HH, Coelho T, Berk JL, Lin KP, Vita G, Attarian S, Planté-Bordeneuve V, Mezei MM, Campistol JM, Buades J, Brannagan TH 3rd, Kim BJ, Oh J, Parman Y, Sekijima Y, Hawkins PN, Solomon SD, Polydefkis M, Dyck PJ, Gandhi PJ, Goyal S, Chen J, Strahs AL, Nochur SV, Sweetser MT, Garg PP, Vaishnaw AK, Gollob JA, Suhr OB

summary/abstract:

Background:

Patisiran, an investigational RNA interference therapeutic agent, specifically inhibits hepatic synthesis of transthyretin.

Methods:

In this phase 3 trial, we randomly assigned patients with hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis with polyneuropathy, in a 2:1 ratio, to receive intravenous patisiran (0.3 mg per kilogram of body weight) or placebo once every 3 weeks. The primary end point was the change from baseline in the modified Neuropathy Impairment Score+7 (mNIS+7; range, 0 to 304, with higher scores indicating more impairment) at 18 months. Other assessments included the Norfolk Quality of Life-Diabetic Neuropathy (Norfolk QOL-DN) questionnaire (range, -4 to 136, with higher scores indicating worse quality of life), 10-m walk test (with gait speed measured in meters per second), and modified body-mass index (modified BMI, defined as [weight in kilograms divided by square of height in meters]×albumin level in grams per liter; lower values indicated worse nutritional status).

Results:

A total of 225 patients underwent randomization (148 to the patisiran group and 77 to the placebo group). The mean (±SD) mNIS+7 at baseline was 80.9±41.5 in the patisiran group and 74.6±37.0 in the placebo group; the least-squares mean (±SE) change from baseline was -6.0±1.7 versus 28.0±2.6 (difference, -34.0 points; P<0.001) at 18 months. The mean (±SD) baseline Norfolk QOL-DN score was 59.6±28.2 in the patisiran group and 55.5±24.3 in the placebo group; the least-squares mean (±SE) change from baseline was -6.7±1.8 versus 14.4±2.7 (difference, -21.1 points; P<0.001) at 18 months. Patisiran also showed an effect on gait speed and modified BMI. At 18 months, the least-squares mean change from baseline in gait speed was 0.08±0.02 m per second with patisiran versus -0.24±0.04 m per second with placebo (difference, 0.31 m per second; P<0.001), and the least-squares mean change from baseline in the modified BMI was -3.7±9.6 versus -119.4±14.5 (difference, 115.7; P<0.001). Approximately 20% of the patients who received patisiran and 10% of those who received placebo had mild or moderate infusion-related reactions; the overall incidence and types of adverse events were similar in the two groups.

Conclusions:

In this trial, patisiran improved multiple clinical manifestations of hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis.

organization: Centre Hospitalier Universitaire, France; Hôpital de la Timone, France; Université Paris-Sud, France; Hôpital de la Timone, France; Nutrition-Salvador Zubiran, Mexico; National Taiwan University Hospital, Japan; Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Japan; Kumamoto University Hospital, Japan; Shinshu University School of Medicine, Japan; University of Heidelberg, Germany; Universitätsklinikum Münster, Germany; University Multiprofile Hospital for Active Treatment, Bulgaria; Hospital de Santo António, Portugal; Boston Medical Center, USA; Harvard Medical School, USA; University Hospital of Messina, Italy; Vancouver General Hospital, Canada; Hospital Clinic, Spain; The Balearic Islands Health Research Institute, Spain; Hospital Son Llatzer, Spain; Columbia University, USA; Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, South Korea; Konkuk University Medical Center, South Korea; Istanbul University, Turkey; University College London, UK; Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, USA; Mayo Clinic, USA; Umeå University, Sweden

DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa1716153

read more full text