MabThera

Active Substance: rituximab
Common Name: rituximab
ATC Code: L01XC02
Marketing Authorisation Holder: Roche Registration Ltd.
Active Substance: rituximab
Status: Authorised
Authorisation Date: 1998-06-02
Therapeutic Area: Arthritis, Rheumatoid Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell
Pharmacotherapeutic Group: Antineoplastic agents

Therapeutic Indication

MabThera is indicated in adults for the following indications:

Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL)

MabThera is indicated for the treatment of previously untreated patients with stage-III-IV follicular lymphoma in combination with chemotherapy.

MabThera maintenance therapy is indicated for the treatment of follicular lymphoma patients responding to induction therapy.

MabThera monotherapy is indicated for treatment of patients with stage-III-IV follicular lymphoma who are chemoresistant or are in their second or subsequent relapse after chemotherapy.

MabThera is indicated for the treatment of patients with CD20-positive diffuse large B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in combination with CHOP (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, prednisolone) chemotherapy.

Chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL)

MabThera in combination with chemotherapy is indicated for the treatment of patients with previously untreated and relapsed / refractory chronic lymphocytic leukaemia. Only limited data are available on efficacy and safety for patients previously treated with monoclonal antibodies including MabThera or patients refractory to previous MabThera plus chemotherapy.

Rheumatoid arthritis

MabThera in combination with methotrexate is indicated for the treatment of adult patients with severe active rheumatoid arthritis who have had an inadequate response or intolerance to other disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARD) including one or more tumour-necrosis-factor (TNF) inhibitor therapies.

MabThera has been shown to reduce the rate of progression of joint damage as measured by X-ray and to improve physical function, when given in combination with methotrexate.

What is MabThera?

MabThera is a concentrate that is made up into a solution for infusion (drip into a vein). It contains the active substance rituximab.

What is MabThera used for?

MabThera is used in adults to treat non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (a cancer of the lymph tissue), chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL, a cancer of the B-lymphocytes, a type of white blood cell) and rheumatoid arthritis (a disease that causes inflammation of the joints).

In non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, MabThera is used to treat two types of the disease, both of which affect B-lymphocytes:

• in follicular lymphoma, MabThera is used in combination with chemotherapy (medicines to treat cancer) in patients with advanced disease who have not been treated before. It can also be used as maintenance treatment in patients whose follicular lymphoma has responded to initial chemotherapy. It is also used on its own in patients with advanced disease who are resistant to chemotherapy or who have failed two or more chemotherapy treatments; 
• in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, MabThera is used in combination with a specific type of chemotherapy called ‘CHOP’ (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine and prednisolone). 

In CLL, MabThera is used in combination with chemotherapy in patients who have not been treated before and in patients whose disease has come back after previous treatment. 

In rheumatoid arthritis, MabThera is used in adults with severe disease in combination with methotrexate (a medicine that acts on the immune system). It is used in patients who cannot take or have not responded adequately to other treatments for rheumatoid arthritis, including a tumour-necrosis-factor (TNF) inhibitor. 

The medicine can only be obtained with a prescription.

How is MabThera used?

MabThera should be given under the close supervision of an experienced doctor, and in an environment where facilities for resuscitating patients are immediately available. When it is given with chemotherapy, MabThera is given on the first day of each chemotherapy cycle. Patients should be given an antihistamine to prevent allergic reactions and an antipyretic to reduce fever before each infusion. They may also need a corticosteroid to reduce inflammation (especially in CLL patients with high levels of lymphocytes in the blood and in rheumatoid-arthritis patients).

In the treatment of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, the usual dose of MabThera is 375 mg per square metre body surface area (calculated using the patient’s height and weight). The number and frequency of infusions depends on the type of lymphoma being treated.

For CLL, MabThera is given six times: the first dose is 375 mg/m², followed by 500 mg/m² for the remaining doses. To prevent side effects caused by destruction of the cancerous lymphocytes, patients need to be well hydrated and treated with medicines that help to stabilise uric acid levels before treatment.

For rheumatoid arthritis, MabThera is given as two infusions of 1,000 mg with a two-week interval between them. Patients usually respond to treatment within 16 to 24 weeks of initial treatment. After 24 weeks, treatment can be repeated depending on the patient’s response. Patients who receive MabThera for rheumatoid arthritis must be given a special card that explains the symptoms of certain types of infection that can occur as a side effect of MabThera, instructing patients to seek medical care immediately if they experience them. See the summary of product characteristics (also part of the EPAR) for full details.

How does MabThera work?

The active substance in MabThera, rituximab, is a monoclonal antibody. A monoclonal antibody is an antibody (a type of protein) that has been designed to recognise and attach to a specific structure (called an antigen) that is found on certain cells in the body. Rituximab has been designed to target an antigen called CD20, which is present on the surface of all B-lymphocytes. When rituximab attaches to the antigen, this causes cell death. This helps in lymphoma and CLL, since the cancerous B-lymphocytes are destroyed. In rheumatoid arthritis, the B-lymphocytes are destroyed in the joints, helping to reduce inflammation.

How has MabThera been studied?

MabThera has been studied in both types of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma:

• in follicular lymphoma, MabThera has been studied in one main study involving 322 patients whose follicular lymphoma had not been treated before. This study looked at the effectiveness of adding MabThera to standard chemotherapy (CVP: cyclophosphamide, vincristine and prednisolone) by measuring how long the patients lived without the disease coming back. Three further studies from the published scientific literature looked at the effects of adding MabThera to other types of chemotherapy. Three studies also looked at MabThera given on its own: one study looked at the overall response rate to MabThera in 203 patients who had failed previous treatments and the other two studies were maintenance studies in a total of 1,353 patients (334 patients whose disease had come back after previous treatment and 1,019 previously untreated patients), looking at how long the patients lived without the disease getting worse;
• in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, the effectiveness of adding MabThera to CHOP chemotherapy was examined in a study involving 399 patients who were all over 60 years of age. The main measure of effectiveness was how long the patients lived without the disease getting worse or the need for a change in treatment.

In CLL, the effectiveness of adding MabThera to ‘FC’ chemotherapy (fludarabine and cyclophosphamide) was studied in 817 patients who had not been treated before and in 552 whose disease had come back after previous treatment. The main measure of effectiveness was how long the patients lived without the disease getting worse. Additional studies from the published scientific literature looked at the effects of adding MabThera to other types of chemotherapy.

In rheumatoid arthritis, MabThera was studied in 517 patients. The effectiveness of adding MabThera to methotrexate was compared with that of adding placebo (a dummy treatment). The study measured how many patients had experienced a 20% improvement in the key symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis after 24 weeks.

What benefit has MabThera shown during the studies?

In non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, patients receiving MabThera had better outcomes than those not receiving it:

• in follicular lymphoma, patients receiving MabThera in addition to CVP chemotherapy lived for an average of 25.9 months without the disease coming back, compared with 6.7 months in those receiving CVP alone. The three additional studies also showed that adding MabThera to other types of chemotherapy also improved the patients’ outcomes. In the studies of MabThera given on its own, 48% of the patients who had failed previous treatment responded to MabThera. The maintenance study in patients whose disease had come back after previous treatment showed that patients who received MabThera lived for an average of 42.2 months without the disease getting worse, compared with 14.3 months in patients who did not receive the medicine. The maintenance study in previously untreated patients showed the likelihood for the disease to get worse was reduced by 50% for patients who received MabThera;
• in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, patients adding MabThera to CHOP chemotherapy lived for an average of 35 months without the disease getting worse or the need for a change in treatment, compared with 13 months in those receiving CHMP alone.

In CLL, patients also had better outcomes when they received MabThera. Those who had not been treated before lived for an average of 39.8 months without their disease getting worse when they received MabThera in addition to FC, compared with 32.2 months in patients receiving FC alone. In patients whose disease had come back after previous treatment, those adding MabThera lived for 30.6 months without their disease getting worse, compared with 20.6 months in those receiving FC alone. The additional studies also showed that adding MabThera to other types of chemotherapy also improved the outcome of patients with CLL.

In rheumatoid arthritis, MabThera was more effective than placebo: 51% of the patients receiving MabThera had an improvement in symptoms, compared with 18% of the patients receiving placebo.

What is the risk associated with MabThera?

When used to treat non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma or CLL, the most common side effects with MabThera (seen in more than 1 patient in 10) are bacterial infections, viral infections, bronchitis (inflammation of the airways in the lungs), neutropenia (low levels of neutrophils, a type of white blood cell), leucopenia (low white-blood-cell counts), febrile neutropenia (neutropenia with fever), thrombocytopenia (low blood platelet counts), reactions related to the infusion (mainly fever, chills and shivering), angioedema (swelling beneath the skin), nausea (feeling sick), pruritus (itching), rash, alopecia (hair loss), fever, chills, asthenia (weakness), headache and decreased levels of IgG (a type of antibody).

When used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, the most common side effects (seen in more than 1 patient in 10) are headache, upper-respiratory-tract infection (colds), urinary-tract infection (infection of the structures that carry urine), reactions related to the infusion. For the full list of all side effects reported with MabThera, see the package leaflet.

MabThera should not be used in people who may be hypersensitive (allergic) to rituximab, mouse proteins or any of the other ingredients. It must not be used in patients who have an active severe infection or a severely weakened immune system. In addition, patients with rheumatoid arthritis must not receive MabThera if they have severe heart failure (an inability of the heart to pump enough blood around the body) or severe heart disease.

Why has MabThera been approved?

The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) decided that MabThera’s benefits are greater than its risks and recommended that it be given marketing authorisation.

Other information about MabThera

The European Commission granted a marketing authorisation valid throughout the European Union for MabThera to Roche Registration Limited on 2 June 1998. The marketing authorisation is valid for an unlimited period.

Source: European Medicines Agency

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