18-month data from the Immune Tolerance Network's (ITN’s) RAVE trial comparing rituximab (anti-CD20) against cyclophosphamide in ANCA-associated Vasculitis will be reported on November 8th at the 2011 American College of Rheumatology (ACR) meeting in Chicago, IL. Protocol Chair Ulrich Specks, MD (Mayo Clinic) will be presenting the following abstract:
Extended follow-up of treatment with Rituximab vs. cyclophosphamide for remission-induction of ANCA-associated Vasculitis: Which subsets are at greatest risk for flare?
In addition to the 18-month data, two presentations of the mechanistic data from this trial will also be presented at this meeting:
Immunoglobulin concentrations and infection risk among patients with ANCA-associated Vasculitis treated with rituximab or cyclophosphamide.
Serum proteins reflecting inflammation, injury, and repair as biomarkers of disease activity in ANCA-associated Vasculitis.
Primary outcome data from the RAVE trial, led by John Stone, MD (Massachusetts General Hospital) and Ulrich Specks, MD, demonstrated that rituximab is as effective as cyclophosphamide for remission induction. This data supported FDA approval of rituximab for granulomatosis and microscopic polyangiitis (common forms of ANCA-associated Vasculitis) in April 2011, representing the first new therapeutic approved for these diseases in over 40 years.
For more information about the primary outcome of this trial, see the 2010 manuscript published in the New England Journal of Medicine.