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UCB today announced new published data showing that Cimzia, the only approved PEGylated anti-TNF, plus methotrexate (MTX), rapidly improved home and workplace productivity, as well as increased participation in social activities compared with placebo plus MTX, for adult patients living with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
The data appear in the Nov issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism.
The Work Productivity Survey (WPS-RA) used in the study, is a validated questionnaire that evaluates productivity limitations associated with RA on work outside the home, on work within the home and on other social activity measures over the preceding month. The WPS-RA was assessed every four weeks starting at baseline in both RAPID trials.
In both RAPID 1 and RAPID 2 studies, considerable improvements in workplace productivity, including reduced absenteeism (full days of work missed due to RA) and presenteeism (days of work productivity reduced by >50%, due to RA), were seen in patients treated with Cimzia plus MTX as early as week 4, and maintained over time through to the end of each study, compared to patients receiving placebo plus MTX.
In the RAPID 1 and RAPID 2 studies 41.6% and 39.8% of patients were employed at baseline respectively. In RAPID 1, patients who were not employed were homemakers, retired, unable to work due to RA or of other employment status. A similar profile was reported in RAPID 2.
At week 4 in RAPID 1, patients treated with Cimzia (200mg) plus MTX reported an average of 1.5 work days missed per month compared to 2.5 days missed per month with placebo. These improvements were increased over time with Cimzia patients reporting 1 day lost per month due to RA by week 24 and by week 52 compared to 4.4 days and 4.5 days respectively with placebo. In the RAPID 1 study on an annual basis, patients treated with Cimzia (200mg) plus MTX had a cumulative gain of an additional 42 full work days over patients treated with placebo.
Cimzia treated patients also reported fewer number of days with reduced productivity while at work (productivity reduced by at least 50% due to arthritis). Improvements were observed with Cimzia compared to placebo from week 4 (4.3 days per month vs. 6.5 days per month with placebo). By week 24 in RAPID 1, Cimzia (200mg) plus MTX treated patients reported an average of 2.4 days per month with reduced productivity in the workplace compared to 5.2 days per month with placebo. These improvements were maintained up to week 52. On an annual basis in RAPID 1, Cimzia (200mg) plus MTX treatment let to 29 fewer days with reduced productivity versus placebo-treated patients.
“Loss of patient productivity and its associated indirect costs are a major contributing factor to the substantial economic burden suffered by patients with RA. Observations, such as those made in this study with certolizumab pegol, suggest that effective treatments can significantly improve productivity, which should be expected to offset some of these costs. This can be very important to patients with RA and their families,” said Dr. Arthur Kavanaugh, Professor of Medicine, University of California, San Diego and lead author.
“In addition to monetary considerations, it is also very important to be able to provide RA patients with an opportunity to perform those work and home activities that they feel are important.”
Home productivity also improved, and at week 4 in RAPID 1, patients treated with Cimzia (200mg) plus MTX on average reported fewer household work days missed per month due to RA than patients treated with placebo plus MTX (6.9 versus 7.6, respectively) and fewer days with reduced productivity (8.1 versus 9.8). These improvements in productivity in the home increased over time with Cimzia patients reporting 3 household work days missed per month due to RA and 4.4 days with reduced productivity within home by week 24 compared to 7.3 and 7.8 days respectively with placebo.
These improvements were maintained up to week 52 and lead to an annual cumulative average of 52 fewer full days of missed household work and 36 fewer days with reduced productivity due to RA compared to placebo.
Cimzia was also associated with increased participation in family, social and leisure activities compared to placebo in each study. In RAPID 1, patients treated with Cimzia (200mg) plus MTX reported fewer days lost of family, social and leisure activities per month compared to placebo by week 4 (4.3 days per month vs. 5.2 days per month) and by week 24 (2.1 days per month vs. 4 days per month).
These improvements were sustained up to week 52 and resulted in an annual cumulative gain of 27 days of family social and leisure activities in the Cimzia (200mg) plus MTX treated patients versus placebo + MTX.
